Ludwig's Metronome
by oneleggedstraycat
Summary: Tsuruga Ren wakes up seven years in the future as an internationally known actor and married to Kyoko.  But things are not as perfect as they seem.  Ren must retrace his skipped over past, before it's secrets destroy everything he has worked for.
1. Chapter 1: An Unforseen Overture

Disclaimer: Yoshiki Nakamura owns Skip Beat, Company of Thieves own "Oscar Wilde", and Margaret Mitchell owns Gone With The Wind. The only thing I own is my obsessed, impatient mind.

* * *

**Ludwig's Metronome**

**Chapter One—An Unforseen Overture**

To Tsuruga Ren, Japan's inimitable actor, illustrious model, and man _Entertainment Tokyo _voted most likely to have women claw each other's eyes out in a struggle over his discarded gum wrapper, time was to be stretched like candy in a taffy puller. Yearning to separate himself from his guilt ridden past and aspiring to a bright future where his existence could never be questioned, Tsuruga Ren stretched every moment in his life with over packed schedules, hectic drama shoots, exhausting photo sessions, and incessant interviews. He ate and slept just enough to fuel him for his next day at work. He avoided attachments but, instead, focused himself entirely in rising up in the entertainment world. Friends, romances, uninterrupted sleep, and the opportunity of being able to waste away an evening pondering on the meaning of existence and other life puzzles would have to wait until after he had accomplished all of his goals. Someday he would once again stand on American soil, this time as a respected American actor. He would leave his Japanese persona behind and call out the name of his beloved mother and father. …And perhaps in this future Mogami Kyoko, the girl he unintentionally fell madly in love with despite his attempts to live as a specter in Japan, would finally look his way and see him as something more than a coworker and mentor.

Perhaps it is the destiny of every aspirant young man who has a clear vision of his future and the confidence that he could achieve it to discover that Fate has a twisted sense of humor. It was this particular day that Fate deemed it necessary to give Ren a wake up call. The job was given to Ren's Timex silver and black atomic alarm clock, the same alarm clock that abetted Ren in his stringent manipulation of time since the first morning he woke up as a Japanese. If the thing had any loyalty, it would have forgotten to ring that morning and let Ren postpone his fate for a brief respite. But instead, as it scrutinized the sleeping body unaware of the circumstances it was in, the callous clock rang in at full force.

"…orcelain teacups decorate tables and the conversation. Beauty pageants, all the time. It's running out, the time is running ou…"

Ren groaned in discomfort. Normally he was used to waking up and getting out of bed in the early hours of daybreak, but this particular morning his body ached and a dull relentless pain fogged the front of his brain. Surely being asleep would be a better remedy for his pain than being awake.

"…are all our own devil. We are all our own devil. And we make this world our hell…"

Eyes still stubbornly closed, Ren flipped over to his stomach. He reached his left arm out to his alarm clock on his nightstand and smacked his hand around in hopes of pressing the snooze button.

"Grrrhhhhhrrrr."

Odd. His hands were hitting something soft. He slowly opened his eyes and found he was hitting a large lump that was beside him in his bed. Experimentally he hit the lump again.

"Mmmrrrraaaahhhhhhhhrrrr."

Why in the world was there a vacuum cleaner in his bed? Perhaps to clear his torpid mind or simply to appease the childish impulse to see if he could make a different sound come out, he hit the lump a third time.

Instead of a groan, a sigh came out of the lump, and, much to Ren's astonishment, so did a slender arm, which grasped his wrist and promptly dumped his arm back on his side of the bed.

Ren was now fully awake. An arm. That was a girl's arm. Panic mixed with utter confusion rose in him. What the heck was a girl doing in his bed? He racked his mind for memories of the night before. Nothing unusual happened. He came home from work late, had a glass of wine and a Twinkie for dinner, set his alarm clock, and went to bed. Nothing that would give him any clue as to what was happening here... Maybe a fan prowled in here while he was asleep and snuck into his bed with some deluded fantasy that he would not mind her company. Odd that the building's security had not stopped her. Keeping unknown people out was why he paid the ridiculous amount of rent to live here.

Ren, somewhat perturbed, sat up in his bed. Just as he was about to give the girl an overly warranted reprimand, something else caught his eye. This was not his room. Instead of his spacious, sophisticated, but somewhat austere bedroom in his penthouse, this room was much smaller and was decorated in the oddest mesh of styles. Gossamer curtains with dangling fairy ornaments and an intricately carved bed with fancy overlapping drapery seemed to come out of a fairy tale. A crudely carved wooden chair was placed in the corner along side a traditional six-foot daruma statue owning only one eye painted on. On the wall was an odd art piece made of voodoo dolls and pins. The surface of the table held a ridiculously garish neo-Rococo vase that seemed strangely familiar to Ren. The cabinet across from his bed was the only thing that seemed normal. It was a piece of modern furniture with sleek lines and an unadorned surface, but its effect was broken by the sight of a raggedy gray tabby cat sprawled out on its top. At least Ren thought it was a cat. It looked a good deal like road kill or a meatloaf gone moldy, and Ren was not quite sure it was alive. It was missing an eye, two back paws, an ear, and large patches of hair. If this room was the craft of an interior designer, the designer would have been taken out back and shot by his or her peers, but somehow the extreme mismatch in styles gave the room an intimate and comfortable feel. It seemed to be endowed with a soul of its own. Ren forced his concentration from the room back to the girl. Surely it was not possible for a girl to drag him from his apartment and bring him to this place without waking him up. The lump looked much smaller than him. How in the worl…

"Reennn…Turn off the alarm," said the lump with an exhausted and slightly pained voice.

"…Time keeps on ticking away. Always running away. We're always running from time…"

Ren stared at the lump, anxiously searching through his head for a way to explain this situation. Although a bit slurred, that was definitely a female voice.

"…on ticking away. Always running away. We're always running in time…"

Another sigh from lump girl. The covers rustled as the girl pulled them back from over her head, revealing a petite face with golden eyes and mid length black hair. Raising herself on one arm, the girl moved herself over the frozen Ren so that her body, covered only with a thin, gauzy, pale pink slip, slid against his chest. She reached her arm out to Ren's left side and snatched Ren's alarm clock off of the nightstand.

"…We are all our devil. We are all our own dev-" The song came to an abrupt end as the girl, somewhat aggressively, slammed down the snooze button. She slid back off of Ren and under the covers with movement that resembled lethargic jello more than any human.

Ren was still frozen in the same spot for a good twenty seconds before he could get his mouth moving.

"Mo…Mogami-san?"

The girl pulled the covers away from her face. "Mogami-san?" she questioned. Her countenance revealed a look of mild confusion as she struggled to keep her eyes open.

Ren struggled to find his voice. "Wha…What are you doing here?"

The confusion on Kyoko's face became more overt. "…We agreed last night that you were making breakfast this morning…Don't tell me you are backing out now."

Ren simply stared at her with a stupefied look as he struggled to find any semblance of sense in the situation.

Kyoko yawned. "Stop being so lazy… Go make me an Osaka Dump." Wrapping the blankets tightly around her so that she resembled a cocoon with her arms pinned closely to her body, Kyoko rolled into Ren and pushed him right off the bed and onto the floor. Seeing that she was successful in her bulldozing efforts, she settled herself into his leftover warm spot.

Like a robot with a circuit malfunction, Ren awkwardly picked himself up and started heading to the bedroom door. Surely things would make more sense when he was out of this crazy room.

When Ren was almost to the door, Kyoko, still in cocoon form, lifted her self up to sitting position. "Wait, Ren," she called out. "I forgot to give you something. Come here." She struggled to pull her arms of her casings.

Ren's body, still on autopilot, drifted to Kyoko's side. When Ren was close to her, she deftly gripped the sides of his neck, pulled his face down to hers, and placed a tender kiss on his lips. When she pulled back, she wore a small smile on her face. "Good morning," was all she said, and then she swiftly fell back down already half asleep.

* * *

After walking into two closets and a bathroom and tripping on the staircase, Ren at long last found himself in the kitchen. He stood in the small room with a dazed look frozen on his face and with his hand barely touching his lips. It was, however, another ten minutes before a coherent thought finally squeezed its way into Ren's mind.

"What in the world is a Osaka Dump?" he wondered aloud.

No...THAT was not the issue right now, he chided himself angrily. What the heck happened last night, and why can I not remember it? His mind raced once again to the night before. There had to be something…something he was missing. He went through the door. Did he lock it? Aahhh…his head still hurt and thinking this hard was not helping. He walked in, took off his shoes, put the keys on the table, went to the kitchen. He was depressed that Kyoko had once again ignored his subtle, halfhearted attempt to confess to her…nothing out of the ordinary. Throb. Ren's eyes jolted up. Maybe the issue was not what he remembered but the fact that he could not remember. He knew this equation from when he was a rebellious teenager. Headache plus memory loss invariably meant that a heavy amount of alcohol was consumed. He must have woken up and gotten madly drunk and forced himself onto Kyoko…Why was Kyoko there? Ren thought of this morning. Kyoko looked different. She must have been wearing a wig (her hair was not that length), and she looked more mature. Her face looked slimmer somehow. Ren sighed. Kyoko always did have the habit of showing up at his apartment at odd hours of the night when acting was involved. She must have had some issue with the part she was playing and came over for advice. The change in location and the heavy drinking must have somehow been related to that…and then he attacked her. As Ren felt the guilt start to crush him, he attempted to turn his thoughts to other things.

The Osaka Dump. The least he could do was to make the girl he assaulted breakfast. His mind scrambled trying to imagine what an Osaka Dump was. It must have something to do with eggs. One thing that Ren had learned about while living in Japan was that the people loved eggs…and rice. Lots of eggs and rice. Ren thought back to the time where he had taken Kyoko out to eat while she was his temporary manager. He chuckled at the memory of how she was practically dancing when she received her egg on a hamburger. Well, he could make eggs. He had watched a costar do it in a drama he was in a while back.

Ren turned on the electric stove to medium high and spotted a pan positioned in the dish rack in the sink. Not eager to fish through all the cabinets in search of a frying pan, he rinsed off the pan, wiped it off with the rag that was out, and set it on the burner.

As he waited for the pan to warm up, the thoughts he was avoiding crept back in. He thought of this morning. Kyoko touched him. She was not afraid of him. She was willing to lay on top of him to get to the alarm clock. Her silky nightwear caught on his skin while she glided across and revealed a good amount of her soft, pale br….No, now was NOT the time to be thinking about that. She was hidden in a pile most of the time, but she did kiss him. That had to mean something. Certainly, that meant that he had not ra… Ren refused to finish that word. He set down the rag that was clenched in his fist and went to the refrigerator to fetch the eggs.

Maybe, just maybe Kyoko was here on her own free will. Maybe Ren was drunk enough to tell her his feelings out right, and maybe Kyoko by some miracle accepted him. Ren just had the extreme bad luck of forgetting it all. Ren tried to calm his panicked heart as he pulled the eggs out of the fridge. Maybe this was a good thing. Maybe last night was some miracle that meant Kyoko was now his to hold and to love. Maybe this was God's way of telling him that he was forgiven for his past and was now allowed some amount of happiness in his life.

No, that situation was not right at all. Even if Kyoko had accepted his feelings, she was definitely not the type of girl to stay over at a man's house the same night. This meant that either she was deeply entrenched in her role and Ren took advantage of that, or he had gotten her stone drunk with him. Ren let out a painful sigh as he rested his forehead on the outside of the refrigerator. His list of crimes kept on rising. Getting a minor drunk and then forcing himself on her. Shame his headache was going away. He would not have minded it becoming intense enough to gain a reprieve from these cruel thoughts. Kyoko would not want anything to do with him. She would despise him from now on. He would be lucky if she even spoke to him after this.

"Um, Ren."

Ren was so wrapped up in his thoughts that he had not noticed that Kyoko had entered the room. He turned his head from the refrigerator and looked at her. Kyoko was wrapped up in what looked like a men's bathrobe and had a bad case of bed head. She's beautiful, Ren thought. Her expression was unreadable, but Ren thought he saw some panic rush through her eyes. Ren braced himself for the inevitable words of rejection. "I'm sorry, but last night was a mistake", "I can't believe that you, my trusted mentor, would do something like this to me", or "I've decided to move to a small, remote island in Zanzibar to a place that has no television, magazines, or internet so I don't have to see your face ever again. Please don't contact me" was bound to be what came out of her mouth.

Kyoko's mouth was open for a moment before words came out. "You set the kitchen on fire."

That was not something he had prepared himself to hear her say. Ren stared dumbfounded at her for a few seconds before turning his head around. There on the stove was a flame two feet high that was darkening the wooden cabinets above.

In a panic, Ren ran to the stove and turned off the burner. The flame was not getting any smaller. He grabbed a snifter glass out of the sink, filled it with water, and threw it on the fire. The flame became larger. Kyoko tapped his shoulder from behind. Flustered, Ren glanced behind him. Kyoko held up the fire extinguisher she had fetched from one of the cabinets. "Electrical fires need this," she calmly stated.

Ren ripped out the pin and squeezed the lever. The flame slowly dissipated as he sprayed it with the white foam. All that remained was a smoldering rag that Ren had absentmindedly set on the burner earlier.

Ren turned around to face Kyoko. Kyoko's shoulders were trembling. For a moment, Ren was worried that the fire had scared her…or that he was scaring her. Then a snort escaped her nose, and the laughter she was attempting to suppress shot out in loud guffaws.

"I..I'm sorry, Ren," she spat out, bent over holding her stomach. "It…It's just I'm usually the neurotic one…It's funny seeing you in a dither for a change…You look like someone just hit your face with a frying pan."

Kyoko walked over to Ren, went up on her tiptoes, and pushed the few strands of hair that had fallen in front of his face behind his ears. Then she went to the stove to inspect the damage.

"This is the first time I've heard of a person setting a kitchen on fire while making a parfait," Kyoko said as she carried the smoking rag to the trash with a pair of tongs.

Ren looked at her. "Osaka Dump….is a parfait?"

Kyoko glanced at him with a confused gaze. "Of course…You've been so odd this morning. Sit down. You can make breakfast sometime when you aren't so dangerous."

Ren watched Kyoko as she worked her way around the kitchen assembling the two parfaits, which seemed to contain the oddest ingredients such as red bean curd, strawberries, sardines, and jello. Watching Kyoko's equable mood this morning, Ren hoped against hope that he was wrong in his earlier reconstruction of the past. Maybe the part she was practicing required her to wake up in the same bed as a man, and the two of them had really not done anything last night. A bit of a stretch but possible. Maybe this was all a sadistic dream. Eating a Twinkie before bed was not the best idea he had ever had.

Kyoko set the strange looking concoction and a teakettle on the small breakfast table and sat opposite Ren. With a certain amount of apprehension, Ren scooped up a small spoonful and put it in his mouth. It was a surprise, although he knew he should not have expected less from Kyoko. The Osaka Dump was edible…even tasty. He looked up at Kyoko to compliment the chef but noticed that she was looking at her untouched food with somewhat of a glower on her face. This change of attitude disturbed Ren, who had finally been able to calm down.

"Are…Are you alright?" Ren asked with hesitation.

Kyoko snapped out from her trance and looked up at him. She gave him a quick smile that did not reach her eyes. "Sorry, I'm just not feeling that well this morning."

Ren did not want to hear the answer to this question. "Are you tired and your muscles sore?" he mumbled.

Kyoko thought for a moment. "That among other things. Bon Appetit." Kyoko unenthusiastically began to eat. Ren noticed that the confection on his tongue had somehow become flavorless.

"How…" Ren cleared his throat. "How do you think your part's coming along?"

"For _Winter Solstice_…Well enough. It will take some interesting convincing to force the director to let me do Chouko the way I want to play her, but convincing people of things is my specialty." Kyoko let out an evil snicker. "The main actor is still a pain, though, but I'll take care of it," Kyoko slowly scooped another spoonful of the parfait into her mouth and stared into space, obviously worried about something. Then noticing that Ren was watching her, she shook herself out of her thoughts. "I'm fine. Stop worrying so much."

Ren watched her. That answer was rather vague, and he wanted to ask more about it, but there were other issues that were of greater importance.

Ren cleared his throat. Even if he was not so terrified of her response, he knew this would still be terribly awkward. "So…um…about last night…I think we need to talk about it." Kyoko looked at him curiously but waited for him to continue. "You and I…did something last night that was irrevocable. I know…that it was probably the alcohol's fault that we both lost our heads…but it was my fault that things went the way they did, and I want to sincerely apologize for-"

"Alcohol? We didn't drink any alcohol yesterday." Ren paused, unsure of how to process that statement within the larger context. Kyoko looked over to the kitchen counter. "Did you drink last night? ...Whoa. You did. That brandy decanter was three fourths full when we went to bed. You woke up in the middle of the night to have a one man drinking party?" Kyoko's expression went from reproachful to concerned. "Is there something wrong? Do you need to talk about something?"

Ren's face, which had been staring at the nearly empty decanter, flipped back to her. "Now's not the time to be asking if I'm all right. I'm more worried about you…I know that what happened last night will change our relationship drastically…I would understand if you would want to break ties with me here and now, but…I want you to know that the feelings that I had last night were not just a whim, and they won't change anytime soon—"

"What are you… Oh, you mean THAT. I didn't know it bothered you so much. I'm not going to 'break ties with you' over that." Ren looked at Kyoko with hopeful eyes. That was until Kyoko continued, "That was just a meaningless incident. It would be ridiculous to take something like that seriously. Its better just to forget the whole thing ever happened and keep our relationship as it is."

"…I'm glad that you don't seem to be hurt, but I hardly think that forgetting it would be the best solution…The truth is that I don't want our relationship to just be what it was."

Kyoko's face for some reason became tense. "NO. It's stupid to change our relationship into something so ridiculous. Let's never bring up what happened yesterday again. It was stupid of both of us to even play around with the idea last night."

This was the first time Ren had been shot down by a girl so blatantly, and it stung more than he thought it would. Ren lowered his head to hide his darkening expression from Kyoko. "…If that is the way you feel…"

"Of course it is. Yesterday was just some deranged passing fancy. The truth is it just wouldn't work out. Think of all the reasons against it. Reason number one is that your fans would hate it and you would lose the respect from the acting community. Reason two, you and I have too many dark sides to be taken seriously as an innocent couple in love. Number three, the height discrepancy of us is just too large to overcome. Both of us would have to be pretty insane not to notice that."

It hurt being shot down, but now Kyoko seemed to be driving a screwdriver into his heart.

"Fairytale romances belong in fairy tales, no matter how much I want it to be otherwise. The relationship we have now is stable and genuine. Changing it would just hurt both of us. Besides, I have a really hard time imagining you in tights."

Ren was falling into dark abyss, but the last word of Kyoko's utterance caught him off guard enough to pull him back. "…Tights?" he asked.

"Exactly. You are an accomplished actor and have a good ability to adapt to different roles, but I still think tights for an extended period of time would just not suit you. The dignified persona you pretend to have just won't come through the same way in nylon, and I am not too sure I want everyone staring at your well-chiseled b—"

"What do tights have to do with anything?"

"Thumbelina's fairy prince wore tights. It's in all of the artistic renditions of the story. There is just no getting away from them."

"Wha…How does Thumbelina's fairy prince's preference in leg garments have anything to do with what we are talking about?"

"…Aren't we talking about last night?" Kyoko looked at Ren's blank face. "Last night, remember? You were like 'Kyoko, there is something I need to talk about.'…with that serious voice, you know. Then I said 'What Ren?' 'Tell me…what would you change about me if you could change anything?' '…Uh, I guess your shoe size. It is nearly impossible to find you shoes in Japan.' '…I meant something I could actually do.' 'Nothing Ren, you are perfect in every way. All the magazines say so.' SLAM—This is where you slammed your hands on the table just like this. I jumped a little too—'I'm serious! What is it that you don't like about me? Is it how I get angry? Is it my messed up past? Would you like me better if I weren't an actor? If I weren't so famous? If I… never met you?' 'Whoever you are is fine with me.' 'Darn it Kyoko'—but you didn't actually say 'darn it'—'I'm running of time. You believe the best in everyone and it gets you hurt every time. You deserve better. Tell me the truth. What is it that you really want from life?' This was my dumb response. '…Well…it would be interesting if you were an actual fairy.' 'Wha…' 'Like the one in Thumbelina. I always dreamed of being Thumbelina. I have a tragic past because I'm so short and no one can see my hidden princess potential. Suddenly, you would whisk me away from being married to the ugly frog, and we live the rest of our lives in your fairy kingdom with the other beautiful fairies…Ah, a dream come true…'"

Kyoko took a breath. Ren sat there in awe. Kyoko had mimicked the two of them flawlessly. She replicated their hand motions and posture to perfection so that it actually seemed that the two of them were talking. She also seemed to have an unusually good memory to memorize such an unintelligible conversation. He must have been drunk already when he had this discussion.

"Then I just went off in my own la-la land like I usually do, but you kept asking questions about what it was about the fairy prince that I liked. You were so serious yesterday and this morning that I figured that you really did want us to act out the fairy tale in real life to please me, but…looking at your expression, I think not. How did you forget the conversation we had yesterday?"

"I was talking about the other thing that happened yesterday. A bigger change than me wearing tights."

Kyoko crinkled her brow. "I can't think of anything else but that. Yesterday was nice, though. It was peaceful spending time together."

Relief slowly permeated throughout Ren's body. He began to pick at his meal with more gusto. "So. Nothing too critical happened last night," Ren mumbled, more to himself than to anyone else.

"Mmmm. Well, except for the sex." Ren choked. "But personally I would hardly classify that as something that happened on the whim of our drunken minds. Can you pass the tea, please?"

"How…How did it happen?" Ren sputtered after he was finished coughing up the sardine he swallowed whole.

Kyoko gave him an odd look and then blushed. "Well, I can give you dramatic rendition right now if you want, but Yashiro is supposed to be here at 8:30. The tea, Ren. Oh, I'll get it myself. I know he's a friend, but I think that a certain amount of privacy should be maintained even between friends. For the good of both…parties." Kyoko's focus moved over to something behind Ren.

Now was Ren's time to blush. "Moga…I mean…Kyoko…chan…I'm really glad that you are taking what happened last night…between us…so composedly. You REALLY don't know how glad I am, but I think there are some very important things to talk about. …Kyoko-chan," Ren looked earnestly into her eyes, which were still fixated behind him, and took a deep breath. "I don't want last night to be the end of things…I…I am not worthy of deserving you yet, but still I want something much more with you…. Actually, for a long time now I've been deeply in l-."

SLAM. Kyoko's hands hit the table shaking her glass bowl so hard that it rolled off the table and crashed onto the floor. Ren, paralyzed, stared at her in silence.

Kyoko gaped at him with a panicked look on her face. "It's 7:03," she breathed.

After a few palpable seconds, Ren found his voice. "So…?"

"Yesterday we ate dinner at 7:03."

"…And?"

"So, earlier when you were burning down the kitchen it was 7:03. The clock on the wall is broken. Give me your wrist." Kyoko snatched Ren's arm and looked at his watch. "Ahhhhhhhhh. It's 8:19. Yashiro's coming over in eleven minutes."

Kyoko rose out of her seat like a geyser, and, keeping a firm grip of Ren's wrist, she rushed out of the kitchen, slid around the corner, and bolted up the stairs, taking two steps at a time. She dragged Ren, who was still unsure of what was happening, into the room and grappled with the buttons on his shirt.

"I can do that myself," Ren spoke, red with embarrassment.

Kyoko looked up from what she was doing. "You're right. You were always faster at undressing people. Hurry up with your shower." And with that, Kyoko left the room, closing the bedroom door behind her.

Ren stood there in the room for a long pause before he stirred himself into action. All this morning he had felt like he had wandered into an absurd Franz Kafka story, he standing with his mouth agape as everything around him was functioning in a logic he could not possibly understand. Finally, something he could get a grip on. Though the world be crazy around him, Tsuruga Ren was never late. Ren stripped off his clothes and entered the shower. The nearly scalding water and the hustle of getting ready on time allowed Ren's overwrought mind a small diversion.

It was exactly 8:29 am when Ren walked out of his sanctuary of the bedroom and back to the chaos that was waiting for him. He could see Kyoko's head rise to view as she climbed up the stairs.

Kyoko assessed his appearance. "Amazing! You're ready to go. You get dressed like Clark Kent in a telephone booth. Hmmm...Your hair is still a bit wet though." Kyoko reached up her hand to check the dampness of his locks.

Ren looked down at her with newly found clarity of mind. No matter what Kyoko thought of last night, he was not going to give her up. If she chose to go to Zanzibar, he would follow her there. There had to be some use for actors among the tribal members and the mongooses.

"…I found this in the house owner's closet. Luckily the size seems to fit. Do you think that it is really okay to wear this? …Besides, the style seems a bit odd."

Kyoko looked at him slightly confused. "I don't think the outfit looks that odd. Of course, fashion has always been your forte more than mine. Listen, Ren, about this afternoon, remember that you-"

"How does Yashiro know that I am here?" Ren interrupted her. Time was running out before his obnoxiously shrewd manager was coming to the door, and Ren needed to keep what happened between Kyoko and himself a secret until he could figure out exactly what was going on between Kyoko and himself.

Kyoko gave him an odd look. "Huh? Oh, Yashiro called earlier this morning about when he was coming over. It was while you were in the kitchen."

So Yashiro knows that Kyoko was with him last night. Great…How was he going to get out of this one?

"Ding dong." The resounding chimes of the doorbell resonated throughout the house. To Ren, they knelled in his impending doom.

Kyoko turned to look over the banister. "Looks like Yashiro's here. I'll go get the door."

With deft speed, Ren grabbed Kyoko's wrist. "Don't tell him about last night."

"Huh?"

"Tell him that I slept on the couch while you slept in the bedroom. Nothing happened beyond a platonic relationship between two adults struggling to do well at their jobs."

"…Why?"

"Because the news of us going around will cause a lot of publicity," Not to mention harassment from Yashiro for the next decade, "and I want us to have a good, long talk before anything gets out. Yashiro won't believe me if I am the one to tell him that nothing happened."

"…I don't see how last night will cause a lot of publicity."

Kyoko was a smart girl, but sometimes her mind did not run on the same cylinders as everyone else. Ren sighed. "Ding dong," the doorbell rang again. Time was running out. He needed to get her to cooperate fast.

"This is an acting test. Your job is to convince your skeptical audience that a completely different reality is the truth. Just do whatever you can to make him forget about what he thinks happened between us."

"I don't see the point…"

"Are you an actress or not? This is important actress training, and you are cowering away? Undedicated actors are not needed in show business."

Kyoko's skeptical stare immediately turned into a look of determination. "Of course not! An actress must be ready to perform in every situation," she asserted.

"Ding dong."

Ren let out his breath. Things were now under control. "That's right." He glanced down at her clothing. "Now go change into something other than that robe, and do something about the wig. I'll go get the door, and you can meet us when you're ready to play your part." Ren shoved her into the bedroom and closed the door. Then he hurried down the stairs and opened the front door.

Outside was a very blue looking Yashiro. "Took you long enough," he mumbled as he forced himself past Ren and entered the house. "I don't care if they say that it's late March. It still feels like January to me."

Yashiro preoccupied himself with rubbing his hands on his shivering limbs in a vain attempt to warm up faster.

Ren was a bit confused. "It didn't seem that cold outside."

"You didn't come all the way over here in a cab with no heater. Trust me. That will change your perspective. You deserve to be tortured for all the pain you put me through. Why do you have to be so far away from the office?"

Frankly, Ren was wondering why he was in this small, secluded house as well, but he could not tell Yashiro that.

After a couple of minutes Yashiro was warmed up enough to stop his rubbing. "Where is Kyoko-chan?" he asked. "She was up this morning when I called your cell."

Ren glanced up to the ceiling. Hopefully this would work. "…She'll…be down in a little bit. She is…still…worried about the role that she was working on yesterday…with me. We practiced it all night…in a completely professional manner, you know."

Yashiro looked confused. "You practiced acting yesterday?"

"Of course." Yashiro had sounded rather skeptical. Ren hoped that Kyoko would hurry up and back up his story. "That was all that happened last night."

Yashiro began to look angry. "Ren, don't tell me that you used all of your alone time with Kyoko on acting issues. If you say yes, I'm going to strangle you, you romance moron."

"Of…"

"Of course," a feminine voice declared, interrupting Ren's. For a split second, Ren was relieved by this voice. Yashiro would believe her. That was, of course, before he glanced up and saw what Kyoko was wearing as she climbed down the stairs.

What the…She had a new wig on. It was brown and was tied up in bows, but that was not all there was. She was wearing a gigantic nineteenth century style green dress with a hoop skirt and fairy decorations dangling off of it. Wait a minute…Ren recognized those figurines and that fabric. Kyoko had somehow constructed a dress out of the bedroom curtains.

Kyoko walked down the steps with dignified grace, swinging her dress as she went along. "Fiddle-dee-dee. I have never heard of such bad taste in all my life. Me with that greedy, conniving varmint? Why Yukihito, you must be joking," she spoke in English with an American southern accent. "Mr. Ren Tsuruga slept down stairs as is proper last night. I wouldn't let him around me in a ten-foot radius as any smart women should do when he is around. He does have a way of turning innocent young girls into women with French tastes if you know what I mean."

Ren's mouth was gaped halfway open, and he was pretty sure Yashiro's was as well.

Kyoko's expression changed from contempt to affection as she walked closer to Yashiro. "Don't believe what you see, Yukihito. I love you. Love you so much that nothing in this life seems to matter anymore." She slid her arms around Yashiro's neck. "Let's run away together. I'll leave everything behind for you. You can escape your boring wife. She's no good for you. I'll love you more, and we will never want for anything as long as we are together. Why, God and the gates of hell won't be able to break us apart from our happiness. Just tell me that you love me."

Yashiro looked down at Kyoko's close face with panicked eyes and a frozen expression. If Ren did not have a suspicion of what was actually going on, he would have punched Yashiro then and there. Yashiro gulped and then stuttered the question "Wha…what…about…R..Ren?"

Kyoko flew back her head in defiant anger. "He means nothing to me. Do you hear me? He's coarse and conceited and quite capable of doing without me. Give me the word and I'll never speak to him again. Just love me. That's all I ask….Why are you silent?...Don't tell me you don't lo….No, I don't want to hear it." Kyoko slapped Yashiro across the face. "You coward. You rotten coward. Go back to your silly, little wife. I don't need you." Kyoko backed up from Yashiro to the center of the room. Suddenly, dramatic theme music resonated from the halls of the house. Kyoko raised up her arms. "As God is my witness, this is not going to lick me. If I have to cheat, steal, or use everyone for my means, I will survive, and I will come out of this happier than anyone. Do you hear me? I'll never be sad again." Kyoko hung her head back in dramatic triumph. The affect was destroyed however when after a few seconds, Kyoko swung her head back, pulled out a remote from her dress, and switched off the music.

She looked expectantly at Ren. "Well, was that okay?" she asked.

Yashiro looked from Kyoko to Ren. "What's…going on?"

"I…might have caused this," Ren stated as he let out a deep breath. How could his attempt at covering things up go so wrong?

"Ren wanted me to joke around with you this morning. I'm not sure why, but it was a lot more fun than I expected." Kyoko started to unpin the wig.

Ren walked over to help her. "You didn't need to act a different character from yourself," he spoke in a hushed voice.

Kyoko glanced up at him confused. "Of course I did. The scenario for the plot did not make sense for it to be of my life, and your mention of a wig confirmed the fact that you were looking for a completely different character."

"I didn't mean…Did it have to be such an ostentatious character?"

"You didn't give me enough information about the character. It's the actor's prerogative to fill in the gaps and give the character life."

"But 'Gone with the Wind'?"

"Don't make this out to be that I am the weird one here. You are the one that has been acting oddly all morning. Oh, you forgot your coat. I'll go get one for you. It's supposed to rain later today." With that Kyoko rushed up the staircase behind her.

Ren turned to Yashiro, who was still watching Kyoko as she rushed up the stairs. There was no escaping it now. Yashiro would goad him with this for the next century. Ren was not quite sure that he could handle this with his own thoughts in turmoil right now.

Yashiro brought his attention back to Ren. "So…. Kyoko-chan seems energetic."

Ren gave him an uneasy glance. "Mhmm." Here it comes…

"Looks like your anniversary was a big success yesterday. I haven't seen her this spirited in a while. Liar…going on about acting practice. I don't see why I always have to be the butt of your and Kyoko's practical jokes."

Odd, he had not asked why Kyoko was here yet. Maybe Yashiro was waiting to attack him once they get in the ca…Wait, what did he say? "Anniversary?"

Yashiro gave Ren an odd look. "Yeah, your and Kyoko's anniversary." Silence. "Your fourth year wedding anniversary. Don't tell me you forgot, especially with that threatening note you sent to LME forbidding anyone of interrupting the two of you yesterday. Nakazawa-kun was shaking and actually made sure with his lawyer that his will was up to date before emailing you about today's schedule change."

Fourth year wedding anniversary? Ren jerked his head down and looked at his hand. There on his left hand was a simple gold band. Relief flooded into Ren's mind. Finally things were starting to make sense. It was all a dream. A crazy, illogical, wonderfully inconsequential dream. All of this was the Twinkie's fault.

Kyoko's image appeared once again as she climbed down the staircase carrying a black trench coat. "This is the best one I can find that is clean. Hopefully, it will be warm enough."

Well, if this were all just a dream, it would be better to make the best use out of it.

Kyoko approached Ren. "One of the buttons looks loose, but if you don't do anything too violent in it, it shou…" Kyoko's mouth was forced silent as Ren grabbed her face and covered her lips with an intense kiss.

Five minutes later they parted, leaving behind a stunned Kyoko, an embarrassed Yashiro, and a very smug looking Ren in its wake.

"…Looks like the anniversary went very well," Yashiro managed to say. "We… have to leave, Ren, or we are going to be late."

"Have a good day," Ren spoke in a husky voice to Kyoko.

"Uh…um…wha…bu..bye," Kyoko managed to babble out, still affected by the kiss.

Ren and Yashiro ventured out into the cold barely lit morning. As they reached the car, they heard Kyoko call out. "R..Ren." In the process of positioning his large body into the vertically challenged sports car, Ren glanced back. "Don't forget about 2:30."

Ren thought a moment. He needed to hurry. Even in a dream, being late to work was not an option. "Not a problem," he called back. Surely he would be awake by then, and if not, Yashiro was the one who kept track of his schedule. Yashiro could clue him in later as to what Kyoko meant.

Inside the car, Yashiro looked over to Ren. "By the way, why did your house smell like smoke?"

Ren had a somewhat sheepish look on his face while he turned on the car. "…I was trying to make something called an Osaka Dump."

Yashiro gave him an odd look. "You burned down the house while making a parfait?"

Why in the world did everyone know what an Osaka Dump was? "…I would hardly call it 'burning down the house'," he mumbled, as he drove out the front gate and onto the unfamiliar country road.

* * *

Notes:

New Author. I woke up one morning realizing that I could write reports fine but did not have the first clue how to write a fictional story. Figure I'd work out my kinks here.

Sorry the plot is stereotypical, but I'm a sucker for time travel, amnesia, and arranged marriage stories. I can't get enough of them. As you can see, I am long winded, and the story plotted out is lengthy too, meaning that the story should run about twenty or so chapters, in case anyone cares. I know this story had a lot of sex jokes (Its about marriage. I figured one couldn't get away from them.), but the only lemons in this story are the type you can put in a pie…the type of pie you can stick in the oven and eat with your grandmother.


	2. Chapter 2: A Blind Concerto

Disclaimer: Yoshiki Nakamura owns Skip Beat, the J M Smucker Company own Folgers Coffee, Christian Dior owns the Dior label, and Marc Jacob owns Marc Jacobs. I wish I owned some love sushi, but I don't.

* * *

**Ludwig's Metronome**

**Chapter 2: A Blind Concerto**

Yashiro Yukihito, manager of actor Tsuruga Ren, was renowned nationwide for two phenomenal events. After being abroad for some time, the two found themselves in the midst of a nut convention when they arrived at Tokyo's airport. With a single flick of the eyebrows, Yashiro was able to flash freeze three thousand frenzied fans intent on ripping Ren limb from limb. The survivors of the incident dubbed his glare "Runway 6's Wormhole to Hell". At another time when on sight for filming, Yashiro's hands grazed the power company's electrical equipment. This act single-handedly caused Japan its largest blackout in history. His mug shot was one of utter humiliation. Still, those two expressions were nothing to the one he had on now as he stood there in horror. His brow was creased, his mouth was gaped open and hanging on the side of his face, and his eyes were stretched out so wide that it seemed as if they would pop out and dangle like wrecking balls in front of his face. What the heck was going on? This was Ren's ninth take. His ninth! Yashiro had been Ren's manager for more than a decade. Although Ren was pretty much a pile of festering secrets with a pulse, Yashiro was pretty confident that he was one of a small group of people who understood Ren best. He knew exactly how seriously Ren took his jobs and how much effort he put into each part to make his performance flawless. It was unheard of for Ren to have this many retakes.

"All right, Tsuruga-san…Let's try this scene one more time," the director uttered into his megaphone with a sigh. "Again, make sure you get into Sato's character. Just follow the same type of performance you've been doing for the past month. That's really all I want."

Yashiro watched as Ren pushed himself to do the scene again. The last time he had seen Ren in this state was when Ren was stuck in his part for _Dark Moon_ and kept on stopping himself before he finished the scene. No, this was different. Ren was acting perfectly well each time, but he kept acting each take in a completely different way. Honestly, Yashiro was impressed by how many ways Ren could interpret a scene of two inmates arguing over the use of a toilet. He had played the part as a hardcore gangster, a cowardly sycophant, an uptight business person, a psychotic sociopath, and, Yashiro's personal favorite if he was not so terrified about the future of Ren's career, a transvestite with a cleaning obsession. And these were just a few. Yashiro stopped paying attention halfway through when sheer panic held a coup d'etat in his brain. Ren knew better than to play practical jokes at work, didn't he?

Wait a minute. Ren was acting odd even before he came into work. The drive here was bizarre. Ren missed six turns, turned the AutoDrive on when attempting to switch off the radio, and tried to take them over a bridge that had been destroyed three years ago. In the desire to arrive at work on time and alive, Yashiro had to basically point out the directions every step of the way.

"Cut. …Tsuruga-san …That was a fascinating scene, but I didn't tell you to act as a drunkard needing a place to throw up. We're not getting anywhere like this. …Why don't you take a twenty minute break to clear your head and we can try this scene again."

All eyes followed Ren as he stepped off the set and walked over to where Yashiro stood. Yashiro looked up at him unsure of what to say to remedy the situation. Whenever Ren was not absolutely perfect, he always took it pretty hard.

Ren let out a long sigh. "This is turning into a nightmare," he breathed.

Yashiro watched the people on set reluctantly turn their attention back to their jobs. After giving a stern look at the remaining gapers, Yashiro gave Ren a hesitant glance. "…Are you on any new medication? We should probably call the doctor and have him change the doses. Maybe cut it in half…or a fourth. Maybe change to something not so hallucinogenic."

Ren gave a small snort. "I wish..."

"Are you playing a game, Ren, because this is not the time for—"

"Yashiro-san, do you know how to wake up from a dream?"

"…Probably do something to shock yourself out of it, I suppose. Had a dream about the President in a business suit giving sermons on the virtue of moderation and spreading around candy hearts that said 'Love Sucks'. Woke me right up. Why?"

Ren looked at the cement wall beside him. "…Would physical pain work?"

"…Probably."

Ren stared at the set obviously with a split mind about something. Then, with a decisive look, he scanned the room for any onlookers and chucked his head into the wall.

"Ouuuchh," he hissed, as he cradled his forehead in the palms of his hands.

Yashiro was now sure he knew what Ren's problem was; he had gone mentally insane. "What do you think you are DOING? Who do you think you are? Kyoko-chan?"

Ren swore under his breath. "…You're still here," he mumbled.

"…Shouldn't you have sworn right after you rammed your head in and not after I spoke? Look, there are better ways to fix this than injuring yourself… Last week you were a bit out of it, but you drank some water, took a break, and did fine. How about we—"

"I guess I will have to fix this. Yashiro, I need you to quickly tell me the plot of the movie and explain to me what type of 'Sato' I have been acting before today."

"Why? You should know this role better than anyone. I mean, you studied it for a month before you even took the job."

Ren gave him a calculated glance and then spoke with a lowered voice. "Right now, I have absolutely no clue what is going on. I don't know the plot of this movie. I have no idea what this 'Sato' character is supposed to be. All I know is that he is in jail and is obsessed about some moldy toilet. I tried acting him in contrasting ways, hoping that the director would give me some clue on what I should be doing, but all anyone says is that my earlier Sato was 'different'. I know this is really some long, discombobulating dream that I am stuck in. You aren't real. The director isn't real. This set and this growing lump on my forehead aren't real. I know all this will disappear when I finally wake up, but I hate being in a position where I can't act, dammit."

Yashiro stood there with a shocked face. This was something he would have never expected of Ren. Not in a million years. His face changed into something more somber. "…I…had no idea that you were so interested in Buddhist theology. …If you are struggling between the decisions between acting and leaving show business, shaving your head, and becoming a Tibetan monk, I think it is best to investigate this life change after we finish this movie and not cut your ties with earthly life right here and now with your crazy acting. The producers are probably not going to accept 'all life is a dream' and 'the success of this film is an illusion of reality' as a valid breach of contract."

Ren groaned in exasperation. "How about this… My anniversary was so blissfully amazing with Kyoko that my love has grown to a debilitating degree, so much that all my memory and sense of reality has disappeared behind my unbridled passion."

"…Lost your memory because of love?"

"Exactly. All I can think about are Kyoko and fat little flying babies in diapers flinging hearts around."

Yashiro stared at Ren for a bit, and then broke into a huge grin. "You could have told me this, you bashful idiot." Yashiro giggled and then playfully punched Ren in the arm. "I always thought there would be a day when you would admit how far you've fallen. Heh heh. Marriage still going strong, huh? Still got it in you. You should have known I would understand a reason like this…embarrassing as it is."

"…I figured you would." Ren's deadpan expression switched back to one of impatience. "So, about the plot?"

"Oh, of course. You play Sato Jiro. You were found with your wife, who is a famous musician, stabbed to death at your home. You have no memory of what transpired, and the police arrest you for her murder. You are convinced of your innocence and attempt to solve the murder yourself."

"And how I play the role?"

"On the surface, a friendly but rather ordinary man with a bit of an Osaka accent. Inside, you are mixed in turmoil. You are still grieving over your wife, but you are preoccupied with finding out what happened. You obsess about justice and proving your innocence."

"…So his extreme obstinacy in his fight with his bunkmate stemmed from…his frustration in a world where his sense of reality was not acknowledged. To Sato, when his rights to the toilet were questioned, his belief in his innocence was questioned. Giving in in the argument over the toilet was the same thing as admitting to killing his wife." Ren sighed. "I should have seen it before. The scene gives enough clues to this."

"Um, Ren. I think this is just a prison squabble over who gets to use the can. I don't think it has to be so metaphorical."

"All acting is metaphor. Give me the script, Yashiro. …This might work." With that, Ren exited the room.

* * *

Ren glanced around to make sure he was alone. This really was the last option. He knew it was stupid, but he had looked at the pages over and over again, and he knew he could do nothing here. This really was not like him, but it was not like things were going to matter once everything went to its proper place.

Ren tried shaking the sink in the public restroom. The thing jiggled; a few loosened screws was all that held it in place. He would have to be careful. Slowly, he pulled himself onto the sink and rose into standing position. There it was in reach. The window, and the rusted gate on it seemed to be a bit loose.

"Just as I thought," he muttered. "This should be easy to get off." Sure enough, Ren had pried it off in a matter of seconds and had broken the lock on the window. Carefully he pulled himself up into sitting position in the small open hole with his legs sticking outside and his body facing the wall. Ren slowly began to slide his body through the window.

"What are you doing?"

Ren looked behind him. A thin, scrawny man in a work uniform was exiting a bathroom stall, rubbing his eyes with his fist. Apparently the man had been sleeping in there the whole time.

"…I'm getting out of here."

The man studied him for a moment. "They're going to figure out that you are escaping."

"Doesn't matter. Not if I hurry."

"You're going to get caught. You're mental if you think you won't. Everyone will recognize you."

Ren twisted his shoulders around. "What the heck am I supposed to do then? Stand around here, knowing absolutely nothing and being no help to anyone?" Anger and frustration flashed in Ren's eyes. "I don't deserve this type of punishment."

Decisively, Ren pushed his body through the window. He found himself at a loss of what to do, however, when his arms became pinned reaching over his head and the rest of his body dangled outside. Ren tried to wiggle his way through the small window but his body did not seem to budge.

"You're going to get caught."

Ren growled in frustration. "Well, can you come up here and give me a push?"

"Nuh-uh. It's too high up, and I don't want to get in trouble."

"Well then, what do you expect me to do then? Live my whole life living in a wall. I do that enough figuratively. I don't need to do it literally as well."

"…I think I know a way to get out. I read it in a spy novel once. All you have to do is twist your body around, dislocate your shoulder from your socket, and then slide right through. It's easy."

Ren flipped his head back, spotted the man with his upside-down vision, and attempted to glare the man to death.

"And cut. Fantastic job, Tsuruga-san and Kinjo-kun. We're done with this area. Crew, get ready for the outside prison escape scenes. Makeup, prepare to get Tsuruga-san's dislocated arm ready." The director turned to give direction to the cameramen.

As a few members of the crew helped Ren out of the window, Ren released a breath of air. Things were going much more smoothly after that disastrous morning. It had taken every ounce of acting skill he had to piece together an acceptable Sato. His reconstruction of this future Ren's Sato was still not the same, but the director still took it…surprisingly, with enthusiasm.

"I see what you were doing before now, with the different personalities. You are emphasizing the loss of the character's center by showing that his personality is becoming destabilized." The director squinted his eyes and gestured small cryptic movements his hands as if he was pushing past the cosmic curtains and entering into some other dimension of absolute knowledge. "Your Sato that you acted now was the same but at the same time a completely different Sato…like he was losing himself. I feel like an idiot. I shouldn't have questioned a top notch actor like you."

"….Right," was all Ren could say. That was rather convenient. Having a good enough reputation where all of his blunders were interpreted as genius.

"I liked how you transformed Sato into being so insanely frustrated and panicked over his lack of memories. Those emotions seem so authentic when you do it." That was because they were authentic. Ren knew precisely how it felt to not have a clue as to what was going on.

Ren looked over to the crowd gathering to watch. Even though they were now on sight at an abandoned prison, there still was a continuous flow of spectators during the whole filming. Curious bystanders, excited onlookers, and fanatical fans who seemed to think they would die if Ren did not sign his name on their anatomical parts with lipstick gathered outside the limits of the barriers. One person caught his eye. It was a woman with reddish brown short hair and stylish, obviously expensive clothes…an American by the looks of it. She wore sunglasses, which was rather odd to be doing in this cloudy weather. The woman did not stay the whole time but kept coming back throughout the day. What bothered Ren was that she seemed to ceaselessly follow him with her eyes. That was not odd in itself. Practically all the fans gathered were watching him. What bothered him was that she acted as if it was he who was the one who was desperate to meet her.

Ahh, what did it matter? Ren sauntered off to Yashiro, who was talking to the director. "What's going on?' Ren asked.

Yashiro looked up from his conversation. "Oh, Director Wakabayashi was just checking with me to reaffirm what time you were off with filming."

"You get off at 1:50. It's 1:18 now. We're going to need to hurry. We got off schedule this morning and haven't been able to get it straightened out. Some of the scenes will be moved to Thursday, but we only have the prison grounds cleared for today."

A feeling of guilt rose in Ren. It was his fault that the director was put in this conundrum. "Yashiro-san, what's on my schedule? Is there any way we can spend more time on set or come back and finish the scenes that need to be done today?"

"You don't have anything until the interview at 5:00 pm."

Odd. Why was his schedule so open? He had not had this much time on his hands during a workday since he was fifteen. "Let's not rush. How about we use that break to do the scenes we couldn't get to and do them right? Is that okay with you two?"

The director had a look that resembled a boy receiving a Tyrannosaurus Rex pet for his birthday. As the director left practically skipping, Ren remembered Kyoko's words.

"2:30! Yashiro-san, wasn't there something I was supposed to do with Kyoko today?"

Yashiro examined his schedule again. "I don't have anything written down, and you guys usually tell me when there is something going on."

"Kyoko told me this morning to remember something that was happening at 2:30."

"Huh? I don't kn…Isn't Kyoko's big interview airing around that time? She probably wanted you to watch it. Do you want me to record it or do you want to tell the director that you can't stay late?"

"No. Record it for me, will you? Work is important, and I really fouled up this morning."

"Tsuruga-san, the make-up crew is ready for your shoulder," the director called from afar.

Ren thanked Yashiro and headed across the room. He did not notice that his watch was flashing pink with a number one on the corner of the screen.

* * *

Fuwa Sho was in a foul mood. When he had just started out as a singer, he knew exactly what he wanted from life—to be the top musician in Japan, have thousands of fans watch his every move, and secure the hottest female star as his girlfriend. Here he was now bogged down in so much work and deadlines that he felt his head would burst. His manager Aki Shoko was currently in the other room with the police dealing with yet another stalker. This one had the charming habit of videotaping him while he was sleeping and stealing his left shoes. Shoko and he had found her crouched in a corner of his large closet telling all the shoes she collected how she had met their "father". He wished Shoko would come back soon though, so that she could shut up his nineteen-year-old supermodel girlfriend, Chi-chi, and let him get on with his work.

"…and then I told him that any handicapped person has it a lot better than I do in these Dior pumps and that he could shove that parking ticket right up his rear. Those old geezers and crippled people needed exercise, and I was doing them a favor for taking that spot."

"…Uh-huh…I really don't care."

"Course he didn't give me a ticket after I showed him some cleavage and gave him my number. Oh, don't be jealous Sho, I gave him a fake number."

"I wouldn't care if you gave him your real one."

"You are jealous. I can tell. You're so cute, Sho. Did you see the Uniqlo ad they just posted up? It's horrible. They took my picture from my left side. Everyone knows that my right side is much more impressive. Oh, for my birthday reception, I bought this cute jacket for you from Marc Jacobs that looks just like BoBo's bow tie."

"…There is no way in hell that you are making me dress up to match your dog."

"But you would look so cute. Trust me. Everyone would love it. Oh, I was talking to Yumi, and she and her boyfriend are going to Nicaragua on some service thing. So I was thinking we should go to Luxembourg…you know, to help with the poor natives and stuff. I heard there were some good wine tasting tours there. I didn't even know that there was good wine in Africa. I feel bad for Yumi. Her boyfriend is totally into me. He has my winter underwear issue under his bed."

Sho groaned. Did this girl ever shut up? He could see how modeling was the perfect career for her. It highlighted her curvaceous body and required her to keep her annoying mouth shut. Sho looked at the music he was attempting to write through her incessant yapping. Daa daa daa da daa da daa mmmh hmm hmm hmm mm mm. …Wait a minute. That was the Folgers coffee jingle. He could not use that crap in his song. Frustrated, Sho crumpled the score in his hand and chucked it at Chi-Chi's still moving mouth.

"Gosh, Sho. Watch where you are throwing that!" she whined. He was watching it. He just had bad luck that it didn't go into her mouth. Then she would have chocked on it and been silent for a few moments.

A familiar face flashed on the television screen in front of him.

"So I was talking to Ricardo, my hair dresser, an—"

"Shut up," Sho hissed. His eyes were focused on the television screen.

"Geez, Sho. Stop acting like a scuzzba—"

"Keep your plasticized lips shut. I'm trying to listen." Chi-Chi was about to yell back, but the image on the television caught her eye as well.

On screen, five ladies were gathered around on a long curved couch. One of the women addressed the young woman in the center. "So tell me, Tsuruga-san. After playing a slew of protagonists, how does it feel to play a villain again in _Winter Solstice_? Do you feel belittled by the casting choice?"

The young lady gave a firm smile. "Not at all. I love acting, no matter what part I play. Each part, even the small ones, has a lot of opportunities. Villains especially. When done correctly, villains are the most complex characters in a drama and are of equal importance to the protagonists."

Kyoko…She was looking good. Beautiful really. Especially in the way she was staring down those wolves.

"What positive thinking! So, being married to Tsuruga Ren, it must be nice to have someone to go home to that can give you acting advice and help with your characters. It gives you a leg up from those other actors."

Kyoko's smile became more forced. "We help each other out. It isn't just a—" Blank screen. Sho looked over to his left. Chi-chi held the remote straight out from her side while she faced Sho. Her body shook while her bloodshot eyes bored into him.

"…What are you doing? I was watching that."

The veins nearly popped out of her forehead. "You two-timing toad. You dare get all hazy-eyed by that girl while I am standing right here. I am your girlfriend, not her. Not anymore. You aren't allowed to think she is pretty."

"Who thought she was pretty? I was merely watching that because she happens to be an old acquaintance, and I wanted to know how fat she has gotten in her old age."

"Don't lie to me…and I know she isn't just an old acquaintance. You've been talking with her on the phone recently, haven't you, you scumbag. You always smile when you see that number and disappear into some other room where I can't hear you."

Sho paused for a moment. "…That's ridiculous. That was just my dry cleaners calling. I was just really excited that my clothes were clean."

"I'm prettier than her. My cup size is an E. My butt has been on the cover of more magazines than Mother Theresa's face. Lots of guys want me. They say I have a sweet personality. Cheater. Slime ball. Adulterator."

Sho chuckled. "You're being silly. Come here. There is nobody else for me but you." Sho pulled her into a kiss. "How about this? You know that restaurant on the other side of town. The expensive one with the really good sushi? While I work here, why don't you go and bring it back for us to share?"

"But it takes an hour to drive there, and there are too many cute stores around that restaurant. I wouldn't be back for at least five hours. How about we order someone to pick it up?"

Sho bit his bottom lip and pulled his eyes open wide. "But it's to celebrate us making up from a fight…and it is your and my special love sushi. We don't want any middle man bringing our love to us."

Chi-chi blushed. "…Of course. I'll be back as soon as I can. Don't move an inch."

Sho smiled and waved. "I won't, Sweetie."

When Chi-chi left through the door, Sho let out a sigh of relief. That was easy. He turned the television back on.

* * *

Bzzzzzzzzz. What the heck was that? Ren looked at his watch. How could a watch vibrate? He looked at the pink flashing object. The number on the corner had changed to one hundred and twenty seven. It had disconcerted him when he realized that he was not wearing his normal watch in this dream world, but the constant vibrating and flashing made him want to chuck this new device at a wall.

Enough of this. It was time to focus on the problem at hand. Here he was walking into an interview, and he had no clue about anything in his life for the past seven years. Well…come to think of it. It might not be that big of a deal. Interview answers were mostly just vague, formulaic responses that half the time were lies anyway. Furthermore, this was just a non-televised meeting with a newspaper reporter. Nothing too major. Ren calmed his nervous heart.

When they approached the room where the interview was supposed to occur, Yashiro turned to Ren and looked him squarely in his eyes. "Okay, Ren. This is just an interview about work. They aren't going to ask you about your home life. You are required to maintain a professional profile. That means no yelling, no swearing, no calling the interviewer names. You are not allowed to rip up the interviewer's notes, throw the photographer's camera at the wall, threaten them in any way, or attempt to choke them."

"…Why would I ever do that? You know me, Yashiro. I'm always professional."

"No sarcastic comments. I don't care what they say. You will handle this in an adult, businesslike manner." Yashiro opened the door. "No biting them either," he whispered.

"Why in the world would I…" Ren started, but he was accosted by a blushing female reporter.

"Hello, Tsuruga-san. May I say it is a dream come true to meet you. You look even more attractive in real life. Kobayashi-kun, doesn't he look more handsome to you? May we say on the newspaper's behalf that we feel honored that you would be willing to take the time to talk with us. Won't you sit down?" The woman led him to a chair set up in the middle of the room. The photographer, a man about sixty, was already busy snapping pictures. The woman sat opposite of Ren and pulled out her notepad.

"So, tell me, Tsuruga Ren," the woman started. "—Or really, we should call you Hizuri Kuon—how is the making of your new film 'Innocence' coming along? Everyone is craving to know more about it."

Ren was taken back when she mentioned his real name. She had acted like the name was common knowledge. Fighting the urge to ask her about it, Ren focused on the question at hand. Luckily, it was a question he knew something about. "I'm glad my fans are still interested in what I do. 'Innocence' is coming along very well. It is an intense dramatic mystery, and I think it will keep the viewers on their toes until the end. I can't really tell you about the details of the film, of course. Only that it is worth going to see."

"I'm glad to see you speaking so positively about the project. Now, why did you choose a Japanese film when so many American directors are clamoring for you to be in their films? Your American film 'Shut Your Eyes' was such a huge success. You took a part only given to you because no American actor wanted to play it and turned it into the most discussed character in a decade. You received an Oscar, countless international awards and accolades, and your name has become known world wide."

Ren stared at her. Was she speaking the truth? He had noticed the amount and type of fans that followed him around had increased, but his schedule for today was practically empty, his house with Kyoko was tiny and far from Tokyo's expensive center, and "Innocence" did not seem that high budget of a film.

"Well, Japan is where I have lived for thirteen years now so I feel a close bond with it. Besides, it's nice to be with the people whom I have grown close to in my years in this country."

"Makes sense. But why did you not act or model for more than a year after you came back to Japan? 'Innocence' is the first thing you have worked on since 'Shut Your Eyes', am I correct?"

Ren was confused. He had no idea. That did not sound like him at all. "…Um…I wanted to spend some quality time with my wife…especially since I had been so busy before."

This reporter's eyes morphed into a look that a spider makes skittering over to its prey caught in its web. "Speaking of Kyoko-san, tell me your feelings about the rumors of your wife and Kudo Aoki. The talk is that Kyoko-san and singer and now up and coming actor Kudo Aoki are more than just costars in the drama 'Winter Solstice'. That they have been unusually close on set."

Ren noticed in the corner of his eye that Yashiro had visibly tensed up. That comment had made Ren anxious, but then he remembered Kyoko's comment from that morning. She had called the main actor in the drama a "pain". That statement did not seem to be hiding any forbidden, adulterous love implications.

"Actors in the same drama always have rumors about them. Viewers like to transfer the chemistry they see on the screen to the actors themselves, but the truth is actors have a life outside the drama. Co-actors do get close through working on the same project together, but it remains a very professional relationship."

The reporter's eyebrows arched in speculation. "Really. So you don't think this is a repeat of the Fuwa Sho incid—"

"Okay. That's enough," Yashiro interrupted. "We are very sorry, but Tsuruga Ren needs to be going. He's a busy actor you know. He has to impart his god-like attractiveness with the rest of the world to be fair. We hope you got everything that you needed."

"No, not re—"

"Good. All right, Ren. Time to get going." At that Yashiro grabbed hold of his arm and dragged him out of the room.

Outside the room, Yashiro was fuming. "I gave the newspaper crew strict guidelines on what they could and could not say. I specifically ordered them not to ask any questions about Kyoko. That reporter probably thought she could get away with it when you mentioned her. Sorry about that, Ren. Next time, I will screen the people looking for interviews even harder."

Ren wanted to ask Yashiro what that was all about, but as they exited the building, something caught his eye across the street. Standing there was that same woman. She smiled coyly at him and gave a contrived wave.

Ren turned to Yashiro. "Do you know who that woman is across the street, Yashiro? She was at the prison site as well."

Yashiro looked to where Ren directed. "There's no woman over there." Ren looked back. She was gone. "Look, Ren. Go home, and have a fantastic love fest with your wife. Tomorrow, all your scenes need to be done in the evening so you have the morning and afternoon to yourself. I'll catch the subway to take me back to the office. See you tomorrow."

Ren nodded in the affirmation that he understood, and then looked back across the street. Somehow her sudden disappearance made him more nervous than her relentless watching.

* * *

As Ren sat stock still in Tokyo traffic, a new terrifying thought occurred to him. This might not be a dream. No matter how much Ren thought about it, the distress he was feeling now could not be contained in a dream. Waking up to Kyoko in his bed, sure. Doing horribly in acting, okay. Having an odd, rather disturbing interview, it's reasonable. If a pink Godzilla with an Elvis wig tore itself out of President Lory's chest and ate every person who hated love, he could see that. But this…sitting in unmoving traffic, watching every second go by, was pure torture. No dream or nightmare would go to this extent of abusing its host. It had been an hour and a half since he started out. He was going across one city, and he had just gotten to the halfway point. Ren watched as the clock slowly turned 7:04.

But if this was not a dream, what did it mean? How was it possible to wake up seven years in the future? He was not Rip Van Winkle for heavens sake. Great, that meant that his failure in acting this morning was real too. It was a good thing he covered it up. But if this morning's acting fiasco was real, then everything else was real. He really was this Tsuruga Ren, the internationally acclaimed, married actor, or at least he was going to be. Besides the traffic and annoying wristwatches, this might not be that bad of a world after all. It terrified him not to know how he arrived at this time period, but if this was his eventual future, he had a lot to look forward to.

Still, if this really was his future, a couple things bothered him. The things that woman mentioned in the interview made him nervous. This Kudo Aoki character made him edgy, but the interviewer had mentioned Fuwa Sho. Ren's eyes blazed. So, Kyoko was still having issues with that idiot. The woman made it sound like Fuwa and Kyoko had an affair. Ren's stomach felt sick. No, the media always made up romances between famous people in show business. It was an occupational hazard. Still, for the media to think that Sho and Kyoko were romantically involved, it suggested that the two were meeting together for some reason. What business did that moron have with Kyoko after she was Ren's wife? Ren tightened his grip on the steering wheel. He needed to think about something else. This was making him too upset.

Knock, knock. This particular thing was the other issue that bothered him. Ren was used to the hormonal teenaged girl fan fest that surrounded him wherever he went, but in this future everyone seemed to be high on this game. The most unexpected people kept on accosting him everywhere he went, but this particular one was the worst. He looked at his driver side window. A woman in her late eighties with long, kinky hair and a frumpy dress had her face and hands smashed up to his window. He crept his car a bit further. Her saliva streaked the glass as her face squelched by. This was getting ridiculous. She had been there for seven minutes…staring at him. His ability to ignore her for any longer was fading fast. The woman knocked on his window again. "Who are you? Are you Tsuruga-san?" he heard her muffled voice question. I am who you think I am, but there is no way I'm telling you that, Ren thought. Not if I do not want you to break into my car, rip me to sheds, and sell my pieces on eBay at grossly overinflated prices. She looked incredibly feisty for her age. The brake lights of the van in front of him switched off. Ren gave a silent thank-you to whatever divine puppet master put him in all this mess but at this instance granted him a crumb of mercy and stepped on the gas.

The second half of the trip went quicker and was less eventful, but Ren was still willing to give up driving for good when he stepped out of the car. Ren looked at the house...his house. Well, this made it worth it. Coming home to Kyoko after a hard day's work…and she not being forced to be there by the love obsessed Yashiro or President. He grinned at the thought of it. Kyoko, all his; he could get used to this.

Ren walked up to the door, opened it quietly, and entered the house. Kyoko sat in the living room huddled on the couch with a phone in her hand. When she heard the click of Ren closing the door, her head jolted up, and she flew to Ren's side. Her anxious eyes searched Ren's.

"You're alive! What happened? Did you get in a car accident? Are you hurt? You don't look too bloody, and your limbs are still attached. Were you in the hospital in a coma all this time? You don't have brain damage, do you? I want you to know that I still will be here for you if all you can do is eat play dough and sing 'I'm a Little Teapot'."

"Huh?"

"No? Then did a crazy fan attack you claiming to be directed to by 1950's American coming of age novels? I don't want to be another Yoko Ono. Did he lock you and the crew in the prison cell at work…and all you could eat all day was rat teriyaki and lick prison slime off the walls? I watched the news, but they did not mention any hold up…but he could have silenced the media by threatening to give you a mullet or something? Or maybe…did you get abducted? Did the yakuza hold you for ransom? Did the CIA want you on some top-secret mission? Oh, I guess you can't say anything if that was the case, can you? Did an unhinged flight attendant pull you in an airplane while you were passing by and fly you to Jamaica where you had to don dread locks, drink from coconuts, and sing Bob Marley songs to convince the people to let you come back home?"

This was rather cute, she being this worried about him because he arrived home a bit late. She was making those innocent, anxious eyes that always made him weak-kneed. "…Kyoko."

"Some voodoo master must have picked out some of your hairs and cursed you into non-existence. Did you re-exist around 7:22 pm? Because that was when I did the counter curse in the bathroom. Be careful going in there. The floor is still sticky with candle wax and chicken blood. Good thing you are still alive. No…maybe you're not alive…maybe you're a ghost…"

"Kyoko, I'm not a…uurghh." Kyoko punched him in the stomach.

"Well, ghosts wouldn't say 'uurghh' when they are hit in the stomach…but if you were my hallucination, you might."

"Kyoko, calm down! I'm perfectly fine. I just hit some rush hour traffic."

"…Rush hour traffic?"

Ren took hold of her arms. "Yes, traffic was ridiculous coming home from work today, but I have been safe and sound all day. You don't have to worry."

He bent down to peck her lips but was stopped. He opened his eyes. Kyoko had clamped his lips shut with her fingers and had the same expression as King Kong about to tackle an American fighter plane.

"Well, you need to," she growled.

"…Mwhaeet?" came the muffled response from Ren's pinched mouth.

Kyoko let his lips go and pulled herself out of Ren's arms. "Where were you at 2:30?"

"…Oh that. We got behind at work, so I stayed late in order to finish all the scenes."

Kyoko's face, if possible, became more livid. "You ditched me for work?"

"I…caused some problems on set this morning, and I needed to stay late to fix them. Don't worry. I had your interview recorded, so we can watch it together tonight."

"Why would I care that you recorded my interview? Ren, we made sure that it didn't mess with either of our work schedules. You could have postponed the work to a later time."

Ren looked at Kyoko oddly. Kyoko was the type of person to know how important it was to do well at a job. Why was she so upset? "I needed to do my work right. Other people were depending on me to do well."

"There are things more important than work. You gave me your promise last night that you would be there!"

How the heck was he supposed to know what he promised "last night"? Last night he and Kyoko were miles away from promising each other anything. Last night he was just an actor with no responsibilities except to his career. Last night he would never have had to act out scenes he had no idea what were about, been worried about elderly women attacking him in his car, or been in a position where he would be so befuddled that he would set a fire in the kitchen. A little frustrated, Ren shot back, "I did what I thought was best."

Kyoko glared at him. A photograph of Kyoko force-feeding Ren hot dogs in a charity eating contest crashed onto the floor. Kyoko's eyes glanced to the splintered glass of the fallen picture frame, and she let out a heavy breath. "If that was the case, why did you not answer any of my calls? I was worried sick about what happened to you. I couldn't even act right at Kimagure Rock tonight."

"…I didn't know that you called."

Kyoko looked at him confused. "I've been calling you all day. Did you not get any of my messages?" She grabbed his wrist and looked at his watch. "…What are you talking about? It says you have two hundred and thirty two missed calls right on it. I even made sure that some of the calls would vibrate to get your attention!"

Ren looked at his watch. "…So that was what the numbers and flashing meant," he mumbled to himself.

"You have had this watch for seven months now. You know that the pink flash means that I am calling you."

Ren continued to look at his wrist. "…How do you dial with this?"

Kyoko growled. A small statue of geometric shapes stacked on top of each other fell off a shelf. "Stop joking around. That's just to tell you if someone important is calling you so you can turn off your ring tone at work. I put your cell phone in your wallet. Look." Kyoko shoved her hand in Ren's coat pocket and pulled out his billfold. She opened it up and pulled out an object the size and shape of a credit card. "See…and even if you hadn't realized that it was in your wallet, you still had the camera phone in your car, and your sunglasses have phone capabilities. I tried to convince you to buy the cell phone monocle as well, but you wouldn't go for it."

Ren looked at his watch and the three-millimeter wide phone in his hand. Never had the rapid development of the cell phone industry annoyed him so much as it did now.

Kyoko opened the closet and grabbed her coat. "I'm too angry right now. I'm going to go for a walk to cool down." She slid around Ren and opened the front door.

Ren turned around to face her. "Kyoko, I'm sorry. What do you want me to do to fix this?"

Kyoko kept her back facing him. "Go get exorcised from this world and make me not feel so stupid for worrying so much." Then she slammed the door behind her.

Silence resounded in the room. …Great. First day of being married to Kyoko, and she already wanted him dead. This was not looking good. Ren heaved a great sigh and moved to the couch. What happened? It sounded like the two of them were supposed to meet together to watch the interview. He could see how she would be angry with him not showing up, but was that something she would shake with fury about? Was the thing at 2:30 something else? What was he supposed to do now? Well, there was only one thing he could do. Wait for Kyoko, and try to fix the situation when she got back.

Ren was already unconsciously tapping the table after fifteen minutes, but after two hours, Ren was a nervous wreck. He paced through the house like a caged up lion and looked out a window every few seconds. After three hours, Ren was beyond wreckage, and a metal compactor at the junkyard was now in the process of squashing his mind into an unrecognizable shape. He had taken to muttering to himself and hallucinating that he could hear Kyoko calling for him.

What was this girl thinking? It was 11:41 pm. The sky had long faded into darkness. All that was outside was that old road and a forest. It was not someplace for a girl wandering alone in at night. Ren actively pushed out the gruesome scenes that were flowing into his mind. …Maybe she was trying to teach him a lesson for earlier today. …Maybe she was leaving him. …That's it. He did not care if she became angrier. He was going to find her, make sure she was safe, and force her to come home, even if he had to tie her down.

Determined, Ren snatched a flashlight he had spotted in the closet and rushed out the door. It was cold, and Ren pulled his jacket closer to him. Spotting a makeshift footpath, Ren hurried into the foreboding forest.

An hour and a half went by, and Ren was becoming more and more desperate. He called out her name till his voice was hoarse, flipped his flashlight to every sound, and ran to every log and rock that looked like a body. His clothes were torn from him pushing through branches and thorns, and his feet had blisters. Where the heck was she?

Something moved. "Kyoko," he rasped out. He pointed his flashlight to the sound. No…it couldn't be. Ren's light shown on a retreating furry mass. What was a bear doing all the way over here in Tokyo? This was bad. If Kyoko ran into it while on her walk, she could have been attacked and was lying in a ditch somewhere. He would not be able to find her without help. Ren spun around and sprinted toward the house.

Ren came to the back door and burst into the kitchen. "Kyoko," he hollered out. Maybe she had wandered back in when he was outside looking for her. No answer. Ren burst into the living room. No one there. Ren's stomach churned. As he continued to search through the rest of the house, he thought of what he needed to do next. Images of Kyoko's prone body lying undiscovered in the forest flashed through his mind. No! He would make it on time. He had to. Now, who the heck was he supposed to call in case of emergency? Calling the police directly might cause a larger problem with all the publicity his name brought. Yashiro or the President. They should be able to help him, if only by acting as the middleman in calling the police. Finding himself in the bedroom, Ren grabbed the home phone. Ren was about to dial the President's number before he realized that the number he knew seven years ago had probably changed. Ren took out the thin phone he had snatched from downstairs. It would have their numbers saved, wouldn't it? But how was he supposed to work this thing? Ren did not see a single button on it. Anxiously fiddling with the machine, Ren sat down on the bed.

"Ughh…Ouch. Ren, you're on my head," came a muffled voice.

Was Ren hearing things? He had to admit. He was not in his right frame of mind.

"Move over. You're squashing my nose."

Ren flipped his head around him. "Kyoko?…Are you really there?" he questioned skeptically.

"Yes, so can you scoot over, preferably to the left? Thank-you."

Ren had moved over, but his mind was still in a state of shock. "…You're under the bed? What…are you doing down there? Weren't you taking a walk outside?"

A pause. "…Well I was about to, but five minutes in to it I realized that it was really cold…and I didn't think it would look good with me leaving in a great huff the way I did to come back in after that short of time, so I…climbed the gutter and entered in through the window."

So she was here the whole time. He felt like a complete idiot. "Why are you under the bed?"

"Bonaparte mentioned that this was a good place to think, but I think it was his idea of revenge for when I ate the last doughnut a month ago. I got stuck. I tried calling for you after awhile but you couldn't hear me, and then I seemed to have dozed off for a bit."

Ren mind was too occupied at being relieved that Kyoko still had her vital organs inside her body. He let the fact that Kyoko seemed to think she could communicate with dead French dictators slide.

A hand came out from under the bed holding a small piece of paper. "Here. This was from this afternoon."

Ren reached down and grabbed the paper in her hand. Ren turn his eyes to it. Whatever it was would give him a clue as to what was so important to her.

"…A photograph of an alien? …You wanted me to meet you to see an alien sighting? …Kyoko, this is probably a hoax. Aliens aren't real…unless something big happened in these last seven years."

"It's not an alien!"

"…Is it a picture of a sea-monkey? You know that those are really just brine shri—"

"Are you looking for a fight, because this mattress is not that thick. It's an ultrasound. The baby is seven weeks along. That's how it is supposed to look."

Ren stared at the picture utterly perplexed. "…You're…pregnant?"

After a moment's pause, a snort came from underneath the bed. "You said the exact same thing a week ago. Is it still that hard to believe? Trust me, I'm nauseous enough for it to be real. Whoever named it morning sickness shall feel my wrath. I'm going to chain that idiot in a Twirl and Whirl all day and night for the rest of his life and see if he feels sick just in the mornings."

Ren still had not taken his eyes away from the blurry black and white photograph. It was incomprehensible to him, absolutely beyond his ability to understand.

"…The doctor seems to think that everything is fine. The baby looks healthy, and the pregnancy looks normal. I need to return in a couple of days when the results from the tests come through." The voice cleared her throat. "Ren, I didn't mean it when I told you to get exorcised. It would hurt a lot having you gone. It's just…I'm really scared, and I need you to be there for me with this. If you don't mind, I still don't want to tell anyone about this until a few weeks more."

Ren pulled his eyes from the picture and lowered himself to the floor. He pulled up the bed skirt and looked into Kyoko's face from underneath the bed.

"I'm sorry. I'm really sorry for missing the doctor's appointment today," he murmured as he stared into her eyes.

Kyoko looked up at the mattress springs. "It's all right. I know you have been stressed by a lot of things lately. I'm mad now, but looking at the rate my anger is decreasing divided by the fact that I know you went out looking for me all night, I should have completely forgotten the incident by around 4:43am." She turned her head back to him again. "Tell you what. If you help me out from under this bed, I'll subtract the time by an hour. My feet fell asleep five hours ago, and I have one major crick up my back."

Ren continued to stare at her. With one hand clenching the ultrasound, Ren reached his other arm out to Kyoko and took a firm hold on her hand.

* * *

Notes:

I tried to get this chapter out as quickly as I could to show the readers that yes, I am doing the story and no, the last chapter was not just a tease, but this chapter seemed to take forever before I was okay with posting it (Probably because this chapter does go on forever. Sorry to those who got bored). Thank you so much for the reviews. They definitely were the things that kept me going with this chapter. You guys are awesome. Thank you sooo much!

I know that sea-monkeys are really just an American and United Kingdom thing and not a Japanese thing, but hey, I got lazy.


	3. Chapter 3: Spider's Minuet

Disclaimer: Yoshiki Nakamura still owns Skip Beat. I own the books but I don't think that counts.

* * *

**Ludwig's Metronome**

**Chapter 3: Spider's Minuet **

There was no doubt that Ren was awake. The frosty air scraped raw his face, the only part of his body left unburied by the heavy comforter, which pressed down on him like the President needling him to share his feelings. Silence engulfed him except for the faint breath by his side rising and falling in a soothing rhythm. Small jolts of pain shot up from his blistered feet as they rubbed against the sheets. Whenever he drew in his breath, he tasted the scent of pine clinging to his skin. Even so, Ren hesitated in opening his eyes. His sight was the only sense he had that was not yet screaming the reality that he was still unready to face.

He would have to look sooner or later. Denial never changed anything. With trepidation, Ren forced his eyelids open and let out a sigh. The shadowy outlines of the room were not of his penthouse, and that vulnerable, unconscious form beside him in bed looked exactly like a certain coworker of his. It was now official. This existence was not a dream he could wake up from, and whatever happened to him could not be solved by simply falling asleep and waking up back in his bed in the penthouse. He was stuck here for good until fate made the arbitrary decision to send him home or he discovered his own way back. Ren turned his head to glance at the glowing numbers of his clock. 4:58 am. He had only slept a few hours, but he knew it was futile to try to fall back asleep. Careful not to wake Kyoko up, he sat up in bed and pulled his knees close to him.

The covers rustled beside him as Kyoko shifted in her sleep. Ren gazed at her bent form and a small smile touched his lips. Kyoko…pregnant. She would make a beautiful mother. His mind went back to last night. While he was racing through the forest the thought occurred to him that he should just spew out his situation to Kyoko. If he were able to convince her that he was indeed the Ren from seven years ago, she would understand why he had missed the mysterious meeting that afternoon, and their silly argument would be solved. Then she told him about the baby. Hearing that news, Ren was hit by a profusion of feelings. Disbelief, bewilderment, wonder, awe, blissful happiness, and pure terror all fought their way into his mind. Finally, one emotion took precedence…guilt. He was not supposed to be here. This was not his time, and the news that Kyoko was pregnant was not his to hear yet. He felt as if he was intruding in something very sacred in the life of his future self.

The news of Kyoko being pregnant suddenly made his situation real. He was actually here in this future. Every careless and flippant action he made here had a real affect on his time to come. He had chosen to not probe into Kyoko's reminder yesterday and ended up seriously hurting her instead. If he had not been thrown into this future, she would have never had to go alone to that doctor's appointment or been worried about his safety for the entire day. He knew his future self would have never allowed that to happen. If he was not careful, he could cause even more trouble and pain for himself and those around him.

Ren could never allow his situation to become known. In this future, he was even more famous than before. If it got out that he thought he was from the past or that he could not remember anything for seven years, the results would be disastrous. Word would spread around like fire. He would most likely be labeled as crazy or mentally incapacitated. His ability to work would be questioned, and he would put the films he was working on in jeopardy.

Ren looked back at Kyoko. Tentatively, Ren brushed Kyoko's misplaced hair away from her eyes. The thrill brought by this slight touch was enough to keep Ren from withdrawing his hand, and his fingers busied themselves with softly caressing her face. He would not tell Kyoko. She had too much to worry about right now to help him, and she needed her husband at this time to support her. Ren never wanted to hurt her again. He needed to play the part of his future self until he discovered a way to return and put everything back in its proper place. If he discovered nothing in his investigation, he could always ask the President for help. The image came to Ren's mind of the President lounging arrogantly in his white robe with a lit cigar in his hand, heckling him and caring little about what his robe revealed with his legs spread out. In the absolute worst case scenario he would ask that man for help.

His hand was still stroking Kyoko's cheek, and Kyoko began to lean her head into his touch. She was so beautiful. Seven years later and her face still shown out innocence, determination, and unbridled energy. It was a good thing that Kyoko was so tired last night. After she had been pulled out from under the bed, she thanked him, stomped her feet to help the blood circulate, slid into a nightgown, and plunged onto the bed, already asleep before she landed. Pregnancy did funny things to women. And it was a good thing too. It had taken all of his restraint to turn his head while Kyoko unabashedly peeled off her clothes as she changed. He knew that he would have been in even more dangerous ground if he were supposed to lie in the same bed as Kyoko when she was awake. It was tough enough to fall asleep while staring at Kyoko's slumbering face.

If he was going to start living as this time's Tsuruga Ren, he was not going to leave the house so utterly unprepared as yesterday. Now was the perfect time to prepare, although it took great inner strength on Ren's part to leave Kyoko's side. Ren wrapped his legs over the side of the bed. When he moved his hand away from Kyoko's face, Kyoko's expression crumpled into a frown. Ren forced himself to lift his body out of bed and exit the room.

With quiet steps, Ren climbed down the stairs and flipped on the living room's light switch. He was in this room for a while last night, but he was in no condition to examine the room's ornamentation. Ren scanned the walls and surfaces for any clues of his married life with Kyoko. Numerous awards were presented in a glass cabinet. Now that he looked closer, he could see that none of them were too recent. Ren smirked at the photograph that was showcased with the trophies. It showed the two of them on top of some peak in Hokkaido in a rainstorm, completely covered in mud. All brown except their eyes poking out, the two wore triumphant smiles on their faces.

A collection of framed photographs lined the dining room wall. Ren stared at the first picture. It was a wedding photo. Kyoko was dressed up in a flouncy white dress and looked brilliant. He looked as if he was not completely sure he could believe what was happening. His parents were standing there with their arms around the two of them. Ren's eyes focused on the picture for a long time. He did it, or at least he would do it. All of his goals and ambitions came true. His hard work paid off. Ren pulled himself away to look at the other photographs. A picture of Yashiro…with a wife and baby. That did not come up in the conversations yesterday. His baby had a knowing smirk on his face. …That brat was going to grow up to be just as much a pain as his father is. Ren sniggered. A picture of the LoveMe group still together. That ridiculous notion that the President created to accommodate Kyoko had soared to being the curse of thirteen members. Ren was about to move to the next photograph on the wall, but his eyes caught sight of something blindingly colorful stashed away in an inconspicuous nook. It was a particularly garish life size portrait of the President and a teenage Maria. …She certainly looked different. It was amazing how much eight-year olds changed in seven years. Well, maybe not that different. Ren spotted that she had a voodoo doll charm hanging from a noose on the belt loop of her rather tight pants. Lory looked the same in his feathery King Montezuma outfit, but his hand seemed to be pointing towards something. Ren looked to where the finger directed. A painted book lay on the painted table. On its spine was written, "Push the Hummingbird's Eye." Ren perused the painting until he spotted a bird depicted on the President's shield. Curious, Ren pushed his thumb against the canvas.

Loud fanfare echoed throughout the house. Then, much to Ren's astonishment, the President's mouth dropped, revealing the periwinkle wall behind the painting, and his eyes rolled around the room. "HAPPY TWENTY-EIGTH BIRTHDAY, REN! For this special event I have composed a song in your honor of my feelings for you," the picture spoke in the President's booming, husky voice. Maria's eyes flipped to the ceiling in disgust. Music started to play, and President Lory began his solo with gusto. "I took you far away when you were a youth where you looked like hell and sat alone and brood like Batman. Too angsty is not cute. As you grew older, you morphed to such a prude. You used to bore me to tears, I'm really telling the truth. That wasn't ni-ice. You were like plain ri-ice. This old man needs spi-ice."

What the heck was this? Ren had seriously underestimated how weird the President could get. Hidden lights started to flash in beat with the music on the picture and frame. Ren stood there with his mouth gaped open for quite some time before his mind grasped the problem at hand. The song was loud, obnoxiously loud. Ren flipped his head up to the ceiling hoping that by some miracle Kyoko was able to sleep through the racket. "You're pointlessly tall. I regret to expose you might look down on us, but we look up your nose. It's not pleasant. You mutated giant." There had to be some type of off button. Ren searched frantically around the frame smothered in gold celestial figures for some type of switch. "Don't glare at me brat. You're still just a kid. You're too confident. Your act still needs work. And I'm just the man to make you less of a dork." Maybe he needed to press some part of the painting to shut this thing up. "Shhh," Ren desperately whispered. "I like to grill you till you're overdone, but I hope you know I think of you as a son." Maybe if he forced the mechanical mouth close. It was no use. Even as a machine, Ren could not force the President's trap shut. The eyes flipped to where Ren was standing. "Kuon. There's no off switch, Kuon. I know you're looking, Kuon." …Creepy, but at least the song sounded like it was winding down. The music grew softer, and the President's last line "Kuon. We're here for you, Kuon. We all love you, Kuon" faded into the longed for silence.

Ren stood completely still for a moment, listening for any rustling from upstairs. There did not seem to be any. Ren let out a sigh of relief, which quickly turned into a one of exasperation when he noticed that the President's mouth opened yet again. "Ren…." The President's eyes rolled over to where Ren was standing and seemed to bore him into the floor. "This is a little birthday advice. Live your life in the present. Do what you can to fix the past and plan for your future, but learn to be happy now. Don't waste your precious life away." Then his mouth rose up to a closed position, and his eyes shifted to staring straight ahead. Ren spotted that Maria's T-shirt had written, "Twist the Devil's Horn." No way in hell. Ren cautiously backed away from the painting and went back to the living room.

Ren went over to the couch and sat on his hands. No more touching. Well…that looked interesting. Copies of his and Kyoko's films and dramas were stacked up on a shelf. Some of them he recognized, but a good many he did not. It looked like he and Kyoko were very busy these past years. One drama brightly labeled "Whisked" caught his eye. Both he and Kyoko were on the cover in chef hats strangling each other. So… the two of them costarred together. Intrigued, Ren slid the disk from its cover, inserted it into the machine, and sat back on the couch.

The opening music commenced, and his face appeared on screen. Wind blowing in his hair, Ren ambled down the streets of Kyoto with carefree strides and spoke in an upbeat voice about the wonders of life. Beside him trailed a tiny, furry, black and white baby penguin. A police officer accosted him about the penguin not having a leash. His character ran, and suddenly an intense police chase ensued. The scene flipped to Kyoko, who was flat on her back on a gourmet restaurant's kitchen countertop. Her employees struggled with preparing all the meals for the restaurant, while Kyoko chucked persimmons at them and ordered them go faster. …A screwball romantic comedy. That was a new thing for him. And it was well done. Ren had to stifle his laughter in order to not wake Kyoko. After two episodes he had already witnessed himself leap over rooftops in only his underwear (that was an embarrassing sight) and shove two marbles up his nose in an attempt to look like Takamisakari, the sumo legend.

"Look. I'm not Doctor Doolittle. Get that midget busboy out of here while we work," came screen Kyoko's annoyed voice.

Screen Ren's mouth dropped open as he clapped his hands on the sides of the penguin's head. "Shhhh," he hissed. "Henry does not like to be insulted. Use his given name and speak politely to him, or he'll be angry and retaliate."

"…You are an absolute weirdo…I hope you realize that."

"You don't understand the precarious situation you are in. I once called him a pint size fluff ball. He would not talk or even look at me for a week. Instead, he regurgitated his krill and squid into my rice cooker. Couldn't get the fish taste out for a month."

Screen Kyoko scowled and put her head up to the infant penguin. "Look. This little monster is nowhere near intelligent to carry out any plan of reve—"

"Aaahhhkkkk…My face!"

That was still Kyoko's voice, but the exclamation did not fit what was happening on screen. Ren looked over. The living Kyoko stood on the staircase covering her eyes with her hand.

"So embarrassing! My eyes burn… Is this what you got up so early in the morning to see?"

Here she was. Time to act as natural as possible.

"What? You look adorable. Especially when you beat my face in with a spatula. Did I wake you?"

"No. I was getting up anyway. Well, if you get to sit here laughing at me, I should have a chance to laugh at you. Don't move. Let me grab some breakfast. I'll join you."

When Kyoko came back, two bowls filled with rice porridge were in her hand. She handed one to Ren and then sat herself by his side.

"Where are we? Are we married yet?" she asked as she folded her legs to her side and began to pick at her food.

"Not yet. Right now we're chasing pigs around the city for braised plum pork for the perfect kaiseki meal."

"Ah…I miss those pigs."

Ren looked over at Kyoko cautiously. "Um…Kyoko…I want to apologize again for yesterday…It was completely out of line for me to—"

"What happened yesterday? I can't remember," Kyoko said simply. When she saw that his face still held a guilty expression, she put her hand on his cheek. "Relax. I told you last night I would forget about it. Don't worry. The next time we have an important appointment, I'll write it in big letters on your underwear, so that you are reminded of it every time you change your clothes at work." The look on Kyoko's face told Ren that she was not kidding.

"What time do you have to go to work today?" Ren asked.

Kyoko swallowed the spoonful of porridge in her mouth. "Well, since you don't work until this evening, I made sure I had today off work as well."

Ren muttered a soft "oh" and turned his head back to the screen. Although it would have been better for him to use the time to investigate a way home, the thought that he would be able to spend several hours with Kyoko alone brought a grin to his face that he could not seem to wipe off.

The two finished breakfast as they watched themselves on screen. Every once in a while, Kyoko made a comment about something happening on screen, but Ren was concentrated on something else. Kyoko's bare arms were taunting him. Ren lifted up his arm and then stopped. Was he allowed to do this? He was acting in the place of his future self, and skinship was definitely allowed between married couples. He moved his arm forward. No… As much as he thought it over, the anxious need for his arm to arrive at its destination did not stem from his thorough acting ability. As much as he wished he could deny it, the twitchy feeling in his arms originated from his own craving to hold Kyoko close. How much was he allowed to get away with in this place to satisfy his own pent up desires for Kyoko? He pulled his arm back. But wait, there was no harm in what he wanted to do and putting an arm around a girl was at an elementary school level of romance. His hand inched forward. No, nothing was elementary school level about his feelings for Kyoko. Would he be able to hold himself back if he was allowed to show the most basic forms of affection? His hand crept back, but stopped, still in midair, when he noticed Kyoko watching him.

Kyoko raised her eyebrows. "What are you doing?"

A long pause. "…Acting exercises."

Kyoko's face switched from skeptical to curious. "Really? Why haven't you shown this trick to me before?" She pulled her own arm up and mimicked his awkward movements. "…How does switching your arm back and forth like an elevator door help with acting?"

A longer pause. "…One arm Tai Chi…It…quickens the blood circulation in your body, making it so you feel different…thus…you are able to fully become the character that you are trying to portray."

Kyoko glanced at his arm still dangling in the air. "I need to try that more often…but right now I'm cold." Kyoko took Ren's arm and placed it around her shoulders. "Ahh. That's better," and she snuggled up to Ren.

Ren's body froze for a good ten seconds. Then a small smile escaped his lips, and he squeezed Kyoko's shoulders tight to him.

The two watched the screen, and Kyoko continued to comment on the actors he never met and the humorous things they did on the set he had never set foot on. Ren tried to respond back in vague but hopefully natural sounding statements, but his attention kept being swayed by the fascination he felt at the trace amount of vibration that hit his chest whenever Kyoko spoke. When he saw Kyoko's face move closer to the actor that Kyoko mentioned liked being called "dear Alfie", though, he picked up the remote and pressed the fast forward button.

"Hey! What are you doing? This is an important part," Kyoko shouted in indignation as she tried to grab the remote from his hands. Ren was somewhat shocked as well. That act was entirely subconscious, but Ren had the sense to raise his arm up and keep the remote out of her reach.

"This…is not an appropriate thing to watch, a wife cheating on her husband," Ren spoke as he avoided looking at the screen as the two characters kissed and necked at comical speed.

"Technically my character was engaged to this guy before she ever met your character. You are the one who is the 'other' man."

"And so your character has no regard for her fake, contract based marriage vows that she had with my character? Look the drama's hero is here." Screen Ren's face appeared, and Ren pressed the play button. "Listen to that triumphant soundtrack in the background. I'm definitely the better one for you."

Kyoko glanced at him sideways and rolled her eyes. "I had to sit through your scenes where you serenaded Hamada-san with a musical saw. I don't see how this is particularly fair."

Screen Kyoko glanced behind her shoulder as screen Ren skipped in. "You're back. Get an apron on, and let's get to work. Last time we were almost at a breakthrough with the herb and truffle gohan. I think we need to keep experimenting until we get it right."

"Hey, Mei. I've got something better than that to show you!" Screen Ren rushed over to her in the kitchen and kissed her on the cheek. She looked somewhat shamefaced.

Screen Kyoko looked skeptical as she watched the childlike man move to the refrigerator. "Something better than the truffle gohan? Naoki, the Yamamoto kaiseki dinner is the pinnacle of your family's culinary history. It's a legend of Japanese cuisine. People used to fly across the world in order to eat a bite of it at your father's restaurant. What could be better than that?"

Screen Ren spun around with a glass in his hand filled with gelatinous gloop. Screen Kyoko eyed it with disdain. Ren eyed it with surprised recognition. "Ta-da!" Screen Ren raised his glass as if elevating it to godhood. "I worked on this all night. I dub thee…"

"The Osaka dump," Ren muttered. "It was invented for this movie."

Kyoko, beside him, turned her head and looked at him oddly. When she heard her screen self tell him off for not acting serious though, she turned her head back, covered her eyes with both of her hands, and shoved her full face into Ren's chest.

"Oh no," she muttered. "I can't watch this."

Ren was shocked when Kyoko initiated even closer contact between the two of them. This was becoming rather dangerous. To keep his mind off of other things, Ren eyed the screen with forced interest. Screen Kyoko growled in annoyance and chucked a pork chop at his head. He caught it, but it slipped out of his fingers. As he struggled to recapture the slippery meat, his hand fell flat on the hot grill causing him to yelp. He tried to pull his hand off, but it was glued on to the grill by the sticky leftover meat residue. When he finally pried himself off, he promptly slipped on the meat that had fallen on the floor and fell into the sink. A bag of flour tumbled down on his head.

Ren looked at Kyoko who was burrowing her head even further into his chest. "It's over. Kyoko, it's only acting. You shouldn't be that upset by it."

Kyoko cautiously pulled out her head and gave him an annoyed look. "I would hardly call that acting when it did this to you." She shoved his hand to his face. "And I had to stand there the whole scene with a bored look on my face, the only one knowing that someone had turned the grill on for real, and that you were unwilling to break the scene to get help. Oh! I thought you said the scene was done!" She pushed her head back into Ren's shirt.

Screen Ren had somehow slipped once again on the meat and was now stumbling to the knife rack, but Ren was not paying attention. His attention had not left the deep J-shaped scar on the palm of his left hand.

When the episode's ending theme began to play, Ren had his finger positioned over the play button to start the next episode, but Kyoko snatched the remote away.

"Nice try," she stated. "But we can't waste our time away having our minds sucked out by watching dramas all day. We need to get to work."

Ren looked at her confused. "I don't need to leave for work until 4:30 pm. There is plenty of time until then to watch another episode."

Kyoko eyed him like he was a child trying to escape cleaning his bedroom. "I'm not talking about work work. The room over the garage has a hole in the wall, remember? We were going to patch it up today."

Personally, Ren would rather spend the time he had off cuddling with Kyoko on the couch. Furthermore, though Ren would never admit it out loud, he really wanted to finish the drama to find out if the two characters ended up together in the end. He wanted the happy end, darn it! "Can't we pay someone to fix it?" he grumbled.

Kyoko rolled her eyes. "Spoiled rich kid," she muttered under her breath and grabbed his hand to pull him off of the couch. Her body weight did little in moving his large mass, and she was now leaning at a one hundred and twenty degree angle from the floor in her efforts. "Do you want me to get dad to lecture you on how important it is to work together as a family? Come on."

Reluctantly, Ren rose up and followed Kyoko upstairs to start his day.

* * *

"…And your children's children shall know my sight and tremble! You shall rue the day you ever messed with this girl, you foolish monster!" Kyoko growled in mighty indignation. She was clad in plastic and foam gladiator armor, and the homemade headband she sported had "Your worst nightmare" scribbled on it with glitter puff paint. In her hands were a tennis racket and a butterfly net. "I will slowly pull off every one of your eight legs and watch you roll around helpless on the ground with your appendage-less body."

Ren looked over and softly chuckled. How did it get like this? They had finished patching up the wall. It took a couple of hours, and both were perfectionists, but the spot where the thirty by twenty-five centimeter hole stood was nearly untraceable due to their hard work. The issue now was that the hole had allowed several animals to find their home in the room above the garage, and Kyoko and Ren spent several more hours catching the invaders and returning them to their outside habitat. They had already caught four bats, two birds, eight mice, one spiny rat, four squirrels, three stray cats, numerous insects, and one raccoon dog, which had somehow squeezed its way into the hole to hibernate for the winter but could not find its way out. Kyoko and he began this animal hunt with the good-natured intention of leading them back to nature, but after working on this endeavor for three hours, becoming tattooed with bite and scratch marks, having bats caught in her hair four times, seeing roaches climb all over her feet, and being picked on by two frisky squirrels, Kyoko's mood had soured to the point of declaring guerilla warfare on anything living that was not human.

"And when you are rolling on the ground in agony I'm going to place flightless flies just beyond your reach. How would you like it if what you were trying catch were dancing around and teasing you with you unable to move? Oh, you want to catch me…but no, I'm going to scamper around your head looking oh so delicious full of sweet, juicy insides that you will never taste!"

Kyoko was definitely dancing on the line that separated sanity from insanity at this moment as she tried to capture the spider that was scurrying just beyond her reach above her head. The spider was frightening to look at. It was black and yellow and about the size of a grapefruit. Ren would normally have never let Kyoko go anywhere near it, but he knew this species of spider was not poisonous and only two animals remained to be relocated. It was better for her to go after that thing instead the fast critter he had been chasing for the last thirty minutes. It would be dangerous for her to continually race back and forth in this cluttered room.

Ren scanned the space around him carefully. The room seemed to be used for storage. Beyond the boxes, the most unusual objects seemed to have found its home here. Ren spotted a ten foot stuffed bear dyed pink and covered with glitter. Must have been another birthday present from the President. A sheet of dust covered everything in this room. Now where was that little scamp?

Whack! Ren looked over. Kyoko had tried to swoop up the invertebrate but had missed once again. The spider was one centimeter above the net and stared down at Kyoko in placid tranquility.

"You dare to evade MY NET? I am covered head to toe in your sticky web. You have a lot of nerve, you pathetic excuse for an insect! I'm going to use this web, tie you up in it, and cast you in spider hell! And when you're reborn, you won't be anything as charming as a spider! Oh no, you'll be a rock, or bacteria, or a pop singer, that's what you'll be!"

The air turned cold, and was it just Ren, or was Kyoko's hair unnaturally flying up? Boxes began to shake. Ren unglued his eyes from her almost glowing body and spotted his prey. The evasive chipmunk now goggled Kyoko and was trembling in fear.

"Got you!" Ren exclaimed as he trapped the creature in the pillowcase he was holding.

Kyoko glanced over at Ren, and the air noticeably warmed up. She smiled. "Did you catch the chipmunk, Ren? That's good. Now it's only this beast left."

Ren held up the pillowcase slightly heavier with the lump inside it and avoided the tiny claws attempting to scratch his hand in retaliation. "I'm going to take this little guy outside. Why don't you leave that spider to me? You're getting a little dangerous with the net."

As soon as Ren exited the building and closed the door behind him, he let out spurt of laughter. As unenthusiastic he was for undertaking home improvement on his time off, he had to admit that working together with Kyoko was considerably enjoyable. The wall took serious effort, but he felt a feeling of pride when it was completed. Kyoko was an entertaining partner to work with. He had no idea what Kyoko was thinking half the time, but what she said was hilarious nonetheless.

Ren climbed down the stairs. Carefully he set the pillowcase on the ground and helped the poor critter untangle itself out of its imprisonment. Ren stared as the chipmunk that had caused him so much trouble bolted to the trees and escaped out of sight. Ren walked back up the stairs and opened the door.

That girl… You could not take your eyes off her for one minute. Kyoko stood tiptoe on a chair, while she swung her net at the ceiling. "Don't give me that look of confidence. That light fixture won't hide you away forever. Now come down here and fight like a man!"

Ren raced to her side and pulled her off the chair. "Do you know how dangerous that is…especially in your condition? I told you I would take care of the spider. You can go take a rest over there."

Kyoko rolled her eyes but smiled. "So we are back to the obsessive coddling. You let me get away with stuff yesterday. You didn't yell at me at all for climbing the gutter."

Ren snorted and climbed up on the chair. "That didn't mean that you didn't deserve it. Where is the spider?"

"It's peeking its evil eyes out on the right side of the glass covering," Kyoko said while she pointed to the ceiling light.

Ren assessed the situation. "Tell you what," Ren said. "Why don't I unlatch the covering and pull it off. Then I will quickly dump the spider into the pillowcase, which you can hold out for me."

Kyoko smiled a villainous grin. "Sounds like a good plan," she whispered as she picked up the linen. "I hope it didn't hear it though. It might think of some counterattack."

Ren chuckled. Then he carefully unscrewed the bolt that held the piece of glass to the ceiling. "All right, are we ready?" he asked Kyoko.

"Yes, captain," Kyoko replied as she saluted him and stretched out the makeshift spider internment camp.

As swift as he could, Ren pulled off the sheet of glass and turned it vertically above the pillowcase. The spider had other ideas. It climbed to the top of the glass and attempted a kamikaze leap into Ren's face. Ren, flustered, let go of the glass with one hand and used it to swat the bug, which was flung back into the air. The affect of this movement, though, caused Ren to lose his balance, and he fell into the box stacked behind him.

...Ouch. Something hard and round was poking him sharply on his buttocks.

"Ahh. I caught you! Your wily tricks won't work now, you coward," Kyoko spoke triumphantly. "Ren, are you all right?"

"…Yeah," Ren hissed as he pulled his sore hide out of the box. What was it that poked him so hard? Ren pulled open the flaps. The culprit was a small statuette, a gold naked man holding a sword on a reel of film. This wasn't… Sure enough, it was his Oscar, and numerous other awards for "Shut Your Eyes" lay neglected in the box. Why were they out here of all places?

"Now you're in trouble! You hurt Ren, and you don't want to see him when he turns into the demon lord. His eyes will flash electric bolts into your puny exoskeleton, and you will writhe in pain as your insides evaporate into meaningless dust."

Ren's attention switched back to saving the spider from Kyoko's cruel taunts. "…Or we can just let it go outside."

Kyoko looked at him expressionless for a few seconds. "…I suppose we can do that." She picked up the pillowcase but froze when she saw a black and yellow form emerge from the cloth and sprint across the floor.

Slowly, Kyoko looked into the pillowcase, and her face sported a menacing smirk. "…A hole. Oh, this foe is formidable."

* * *

Ren sat with Yashiro in the small LME room and attempted to muffle his laughter while he reminisced about earlier that day. They never were able to catch that spider. Finally, Kyoko and he postponed their warfare for another day. Instead, they walked back to the house and prepared lunch together. Ren was careful to hide his lack of cooking skills from Kyoko. That reminded him. He needed to throw out the three burnt fried eggs he cached in the cookie jar before she discovered them.

"What are you smiling so foolishly about?" the astute manager asked.

What was it with this person and his radar on Ren's embarrassing moments? "Didn't you say that we were working on the set of 'Innocence' tonight? Why are we here?" he asked evasively.

Yashiro stared at him for a moment. "Fine," he said. "Play boring." His eyes returned to the file of papers he was thumbing through. "The producers of the movie you are doing a month from now said that they had some time to meet with us today. It won't be long. We'll have plenty of time to get to the set on schedule."

Sure enough, by the time Yashiro finished speaking, two men entered the room. Ren was surprised to see that one man had blond hair and blue eyes while the other, a man about forty, had red hair, freckles, and donned a San Francisco Giants baseball cap.

"Hi, Kuon. How's it going?" the man with red hair spoke, reaching out his hand in an easygoing manner. He spoke in English. The other man let out a huge yawn.

Ren concealed his surprise and took the man's hand in greeting. "Good evening. Things are going pretty well." Both the men wore crinkled clothes and the blond haired man was struggling to keep his eyes open. This could only mean… "How was your air flight over here today? Did you just get in?"

"It went all right. We got here a few hours ago. I slept like a baby the whole time, but Marvin here couldn't sleep a wink. Kept going on and on about a lump in the seat."

Marvin, the shaggy, blond haired one, scuffled over to nearest chair and dropped his head onto the table in front of him.

Looking at him, Baseball cap cleared his throat and looked apologetically at Ren and Yashiro. "Sorry about him, but I think its best to get on with our business. Well, here is your new contract." The man sat down, pulled out two documents, and handed them over to Ren and Yashiro. "This is the contract that were drafted based on the concerns you brought up three weeks ago. Instead of acting the whole movie in Los Angeles, much of the filming will be done right here in Japan. We'll fly the actors over here instead of you going over to L.A. For the shots not done in a studio, you shouldn't have to be in the states no more than two weeks at a time."

Ren sat there in shock for a moment and then glanced at the proposed schedule written into his contract. It looked complicated, and the filming looked greatly prolonged in order to fit with his supposed demands.

Yashiro besides him nodded as he looked over his copy of the contract. "This looks much better. Thanks for rearranging things for my client."

Baseball cap smiled. "It was tough, but worth it if it meant that the legendary Kuon Hizuri was acting in our movie. As soon as we heard that he was working again on that Japanese film he's doing, we jumped at the chance of getting him for our movie. Seeing as how no other American filmmakers could get Ren to even look at their scripts this past year, we consider ourselves pretty lucky." He went back into his suitcase and pulled out a bound notebook and handed it over to Ren. "Here is the revised script. We rewrote the scenes so that many of them could be done in Japan. I think it turned out pretty well."

Ren took the book and flipped through it, but his eyes could not focus on the writing. He was too amazed at the situation occurring in front of him. Here was a Hollywood studio bending over backwards to get him in one of their movies. No mention of his father's name. No belittling talks about how his views about his part were insignificant. No flippant dismissal even before he had a chance to act. He knew that his future self had already broken through to the Hollywood market, but he still felt dumbstruck sitting in this room, listening to the business meeting.

Ren cleared his throat. "Do…do you want me to sign here?" he said, pointing to the dotted line on the bottom of the contract.

The red-haired man smiled. "That's right, if everything looks good to you."

Ren let out a breath of air as he signed the contract with the name he had not written since he was fifteen years old. Ren had a difficult time hiding his nervousness and excitement, and his hand shook while writing his name. Good thing Baseball cap was not paying close attention. Only Yashiro gave him an odd glance.

The man took the contract from Ren's hands. "That's great!" he sighed. It appeared that Ren was not the only one nervous about this contract. "Now all we need is my signature." He wrote his name down excitedly on the paper. Then he looked at his partner who was now snoring loudly besides him. After staring at the unconscious body for a prolonged moment, Baseball cap took hold of Marvin's hand, stuffed a fountain pen in it, and proceeded to force the man's hand into writing his name on the third dotted line. Then Baseball cap tucked the man's hand back under his drooling head and admired the contract. The signature of the other man looked like a blind child wrote it. It was barely legible. "That should be legal enough," he stated. "Well, thank you for your time, Kuon. I look forward to working with you on this project together. I think that I better take Marvin to the hotel room before we finish the rest of the stuff we need to prepare in Japan."

The man bent over, pulled Marvin's arms around his neck, and pulled him up on to his back. As Marvin was much taller than him, Marvin's feet dragged on the ground. About to exit through the door, the hunched over Baseball cap turned his head back to face Ren. "Oh yeah. I almost forgot. Marvin said that you called a couple days ago and wanted to tell us something."

Ren looked at the man like a deer looks at headlights. "…Did I?" he asked.

The man shifted under the load he carried. "Marvin said that you sounded pretty serious about it and that you wanted to meet with us as soon as possible."

Ren looked at Yashiro to help him, but Yashiro's face was blank. "I…only wanted to tell you in person how much I am looking forward to doing this project and that I will give it my best effort."

Baseball cap looked confused for a second. "…Oh…Okay. I'm glad that it was something like that. I look forward to working with you in the future as well. Have a good evening both of you." With that, he exited through the door. The door hit Marvin's head as it swung back to a close, but neither man seemed to pay any attention to it.

* * *

Ren's back pressed hard against the concrete column. Moonlight shone through the decaying roof and highlighted half of Ren's face. He heard footsteps. As quiet as possible, Ren manipulated his body so that he could glance around the concrete barrier without being seen. There, seven meters from him, the all too familiar man strode into the center of the room. The man was in his fifties with graying hair and wore a black bulletproof vest. His hands held his gun up to his chest ready to use it without delay if the situation called for it. The man looked steadily around. Ren flipped his head back.

"I know you are in here, Sato-san. Give yourself up. Serve your time like a responsible citizen," the man boomed out.

"I didn't do it!" Ren yelled back, careful to keep all of his body parts hidden.

"You were convicted by a court of law. There is no point feigning your innocence any longer, Sato-san."

Ren turned his head over his shoulder and clicked his tongue in disgust. "You don't even care about justice or truth. Look, I have proof that I didn't do it. Tomohiro Shinsaku. He's a music professor at a community college. He lives six houses down from where I live. Investigate him."

"I have more important things to do than investigate your foolish hunches. Turn yourself in, Sato-san, and I'll makes sure the punishment for breaking out of prison will be as light as possible."

Ren glowered, though the man had no way of seeing this glare. "Tomohiro has something of my wife's in his possession. A wooden, pyramid shaped box that ticks off rhythm so that pianists can keep time," Ren spoke while clenching his fists.

"So what? Many musicians have something like that. It doesn't prove anything."

"It's the same one I tell you," Ren yelled. "Marie's one is a very distinctive one. It was owned by Beethoven and is worth an absolute fortune. He must have killed my wife in order to steal it from her. He's a musician. He must have known its real value. Look, it's easy to tell if it's that one. The one owned by Marie had a problem where every fourth beat was slurred. If you just tes—"

"You're in the rafters," the man spoke. Ren heard a gunshot and shattered rock fragments flew off besides his head. Ren leaped up and ran across the beam that connected him to the wall. Bullets flew past him. He saw the hole in the roof and leaped through it just as a bullet lodged itself into his left calf.

"And cut," the director called out. "That's a fantastic job, you two. All right, we are finished for tonight. Get yourselves dressed and head home."

Ren yawned as he climbed down the ladder. It was three in the morning, and he was ready to go to sleep. It was still a long way home, but there should not be too much traffic this time of night.

In his dressing room, Ren changed out of his costume and ran his fingers through his hair a couple times. Ready to leave, he opened the door and saw Yashiro standing there with two cups of coffee in his hands.

"There's a scheduling issue that I need to take care of with the director," Yashiro said as he handed one of the steaming beverages to his grateful client. "Why don't you go on home? You look exhausted. I see those dark eyes were not just makeup."

Ren was only too happy to take up that suggestion. Ren thanked him and headed to the parking garage. He took a large gulp of the vending machine brown water that claimed itself to be coffee but immediately choked on it when he caught sight of his car. On top of his hood lounged a woman, the same woman that had unsettled him yesterday. Ren, struggling to breath through the liquid caught in his throat, cautiously approached the car.

"Ma…ahem…May I help you?" he asked in English.

The woman raised her eyebrow. "Shouldn't I be the one asking you that? Don't you have something to tell me?"

Ren stood there uncertain of what to say.

She looked him over and gave a snort. "So I see you haven't done it yet like you said you would," she stated simply.

"…Done what?"

The woman laughed as she climbed down off of Ren's car. "Still living in denial, I see." She stopped short and the sophisticated look on her face disappeared. "…And I didn't mean to imply that corny joke where someone says 'living in denial' and means 'living in the Nile' because, seriously, that joke is overused and not that funny. The Nile is a river. Who lives in a river unless you are a crocodile or a fish? Unless you have a houseboat… But a houseboat would have serious trouble in a rapidly changing river like the Nile. Absolutely ridiculous, don't you think?"

Ren stared at her for a moment. "…I suppose," he finally said.

The woman drew in a breath and swung her arms behind her back. "Well, it's all the better for me, really. I don't know if I'm disappointed or elated to find out that you are like everyone else. Technically, I'm the winner this round, but I still feel like I lost something. Oh, well. Thanks for the gift, and take your time. That's all I can say. I guess I should go sightsee while you take your time deciding things. I have never been to Tokyo tower before… Or is our business together of the permanent nature, and I should just head to the states?"

…What the heck was this girl talking about? She spoke a great deal, but Ren still had no idea what she was trying to say. About to question her on her meaning, Ren opened his mouth to speak, but the woman had already changed topics.

"I've been watching you act in that Japanese movie. Your acting is good."

"Um…thank you," was Ren's clever response.

"The part's ridiculous though," she stated as she fiddled with her finger nails. "Not true to life at all. I mean, why spend all that time trying to uncover your wife's murderer? Steal back that expensive antique, sell it in the black market, and use the money to fund a new life in somewhere more exciting, like Tahiti or Paris. Why obsess over some dead baggage that won't be able to do a thing for you but cause you to be shot or arrested again?"

Ren stared at her. "I'm…sure that finding his wife's killer is his way of dealing with the grief from her death."

The woman shot out a loud burst of laughter. "Grief? Please. The two characters were married for like, what? Five or six years? Everyone knows that the feeling of love is just a temporary period of self-delusion caused by chemicals in the brain. It lasts a year, maybe two tops. If his marriage didn't end at her death, it would have ended in divorce in a couple of years. He should consider himself lucky."

Ren could not find anything to say to that comment. It turned out he did not need to. Footsteps sounded behind him. The woman looked past Ren and clicked her tongue in disgust.

"That's my cue," she muttered, and she jumped up on his hood again, pulled herself up on the wall, and escaped through the small gap on top that connected the garage to the outside.

Ren turned around and saw Yashiro trotting towards him.

"That woman again?" Yashiro muttered when he reached Ren's side. "I thought she was finally leaving you alone. Looks like we are going to have to take out a restraining order on her."

Ren looked closely at Yashiro's face. "That woman?" he asked.

Yashiro looked confused. "Wasn't that Caitlyn Nox, your co-star from 'Shut Your Eyes'? What did she want?"

Ren stared back at the hole she had escaped through. "…I have absolutely no idea."

Yashiro gave Ren an uncertain look and then shrugged his shoulders. "Well, she can't cause too much damage to you, can she? She's a famous Hollywood actress, isn't she? She has probably been able to walk around wherever she pleases because no one expects Caitlyn Nox to be in Japan, so they assume she's just a look alike. If she did anything too wild, the press would be all over her. Oh, I'm glad I caught you. The scheduling issue got taken care of sooner than I thought. Here's your timetable for tomorrow."

After Ren gave Yashiro a lift home, Ren's mind became consumed with thoughts of the "Caitlyn Nox" incident. Something about that woman rubbed him the wrong way, and he could not figure out what it was. She was rather rude. Her high heels left a dent in his hood. Her discussion of the movie was somewhat disturbing. But those things were not enough to make him feel that he should run away from her in the opposite direction. The light turned red in front of him and he slowed to a stop. A mother carried her sleeping daughter dressed in a tiara and fairy wings and hurried across the crosswalk in front of him. He smiled at the sight but then froze. That was it. The reason the woman unnerved him as much as she did. Either it was the way she looked or her mannerisms, but she reminded him a bit of Kyoko. At the same time, she was a complete opposite of Kyoko. A perversion of her in a way, and it unnerved him.

Ren pulled onto the quiet country road that led to his house. Better think about more important things. That woman was not his problem…at least not yet. He was supposed to be finding a way back home, and he had done nothing whatsoever today to help with that endeavor. He thought back to his time with Kyoko earlier that day. Tomorrow, he could work on it tomorrow. Spending time with Kyoko today was worth forgetting about his main objective. Ren smiled once again as he remembered how Kyoko dug her face into his chest that morning. Shoot. He really did need to find a way back fast. He was turning more and more into a pathetic lovesick fool every moment he stayed here. Not that he was not before, but it was becoming worse.

That was odd. Another car's headlights flashed in front of him. What could a car be doing here at this time of night? As far as he saw, the only things down this road were a remote ranger's station, a small lumberyard, and his house. He pulled off to the side to let the anxious car pass him on the narrow road. The shiny red Ferrari flew past him, and Ren had only a moment to look in the car's window. …No, it couldn't be. Ren must have been seeing things. There are plenty of men that dye their hair blond, and the face Ren thought he saw had absolutely no reason to be on this road. Ren clenched his teeth and drove back onto the road. It must have been the light. He was not even completely sure the man had blond hair. It could have even been a woman…

Ren pulled into his driveway and parked. What he saw did not mean anything. He looked at the clock. 4:12 am it read. Kyoko would be asleep by now. She could barely stay awake last night when they were fighting. Ren took a deep breath and pulled himself out of the car. He looked at the house. …That was odd. Why was his bedroom light on? He went to the door and opened it with his key. He turned on the light and carefully walked up the stairs. The light under his bedroom door was now gone. What was going on? He opened the door.

He heard a rustle. "…Ren…are you there?" came a tired voice. Light flashed on, and Kyoko came into his view. She sat up in bed dressed in a nightgown with her hand on the lamp. She rubbed her eyes and yawned. "Did you just get back? What time is it?" she asked as she squinted in the light.

Ren stared at her. "Wasn't the light on in here just a minute ago?" he asked.

Kyoko looked confused for a moment and then smiled. "Oh," she spoke. "You must have seen the light from the next room over. I must have forgotten to turn it off before I went to bed. I've been asleep for…" she looked at the clock, "five hours or so."

Ren looked around the room. "…Oh," he stated.

Kyoko lay back down in bed. "Come to bed. You need to leave for work by eight o'clock tomorrow morning. You need as much sleep as you can get."

Ren stood there for a moment and then slowly walked to the closet. He stepped on a piece paper. "What is this?" he said as he bent down to pick it up.

Kyoko face became white. She leaped out of bed and snatched it from his hands. "Oh, it's junk mail. I forgot to throw it away, " she said as she crumpled it up but kept it in her fists. "On second thought, sleep in your clothes. You will have to get up in a few hours anyway. Think of it as a time saver." She quickly pushed him onto the bed and threw a blanket over him.

Ren had difficulty processing why his body was now horizontal and wrapped like sushi. "Wha…"

"Don't try to talk yourself out of sleep because you 'train' your body, because I'm not falling for it. Goodnight," she whispered and leaning over to kiss him, she switched off the light.

* * *

Notes:

I don't usually get to comment on things that people commented on in the reviews because you guys catch onto things that will be important later on in the story, but some people commented on why Ren does not simply confess that he is from the future or that he does not remember anything for the past seven years, and I can now address it here. I totally agree with you. Practically all Asian dramas have this "let's not talk about it" plot device and I am left screaming at the screen "You idiot! All of the drama is composed from your own stupidity." The reason that Ren is not speaking though is that when this story was being created in my mind I thought about his character. He really is that stupid character who will find any excuse not to talk about something and will try to handle it all himself. The only time he talks is when Bo forces it out of him. That's why I did it like I did…or maybe it just works with the plot better this way and I'm a sellout. Well, to apologize to those who were disappointed and really to thank all those who have taken the time to review, I posted the entire lyrics to Lory's song on my author's page (the icon on top that says "oneleggedstraycat"). I hope you like it!


	4. Chapter 4: Curse, Kiss, and Counterpoint

Disclaimer: I do not own Skip Beat or any of the other junk I mentioned in here.

* * *

**Ludwig's Metronome**

**Chapter 4: Curse, Kiss, and Counterpoint**

From the commencement of the planet's first morning, life had been perpetually evolving into more pristine and consummate forms. Each new species brought with it a more exceptional genetic code to better adapt and control its surroundings. All this evolution was made no longer necessary, however, when the perfect being broke out from the inferior dust and shone. His genetic makeup was so superior that he knew it was only a matter of time before all other life forms would bow in utter humiliation before him…not that Kudo Aoki was bragging, of course. He had so much wholesome humility secreting from his body that he would put Buddha to "crying for his mama" shame in a Holiest Being SmackDown special. It was at this moment while facing an actress in a heart-rending love scene that this genius had another mind-altering epiphany. The goddess of Venus must have slapped his butt as a baby or something, because there was no humanly way possible for a man to be this good looking. He licked his teeth and watched his reflection mimic him in the girl's glasses. Oh yeah, he was smoking. Look, he could even flip his hair back, and it fell perfectly in place.

"I..I..love you. Don't you remember me?" the short actress spoke in awkward monotone. "We used to ride our cheeseburgers together and laugh at the birds that gathered around us while we munched on our bikes…no, sorry. The other way. We used to ride our bikes and laugh at our cheeseburgers while we munched on the birds. You remember that, don't you? I have never forgotten it for a second."

Kudo glanced over to the man sitting in the sidelines. He was going to take that? What a useless director. Oh, well. Time for him to shine, and the worst his costars were, the better he looked.

He flipped his face away in irritation—he bet his hair was really doing magic here…enough for two thousand Japanese women to fall down stiff at the sight of his oozing sex appeal—and shoved the girl's hand away. "No, I don't know you," he growled. "I've forgotten everything. I've forgotten all about our promise that we would stay close even though we were in different countries. I don't remember all the times I wrote to you or the agony when everyday my mailbox was empty. I had just recently been able to forget how much a fool I was waiting for you for five years, like a lovesick, abandoned puppy, so leave me alone." Good. He made himself sound more desperate as he went through the lines. He was an acting god.

The girl in front of him made a rather odd expression. She squashed up her face like a pug dog, and her face turned red. Was she trying to cry? She looked like she just got electrocuted while holding it in for the bathroom. "Bu…but I…" the actress whimpered.

The set door slammed open and in walked a force that compelled all eyes to follow her every movement. Tsuruga Kyoko eyed the two of them steadily with an odd hint of panic in her eyes. She closed her eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. She seemed almost fragile in that position, but when she reopened her eyes, her expression had hardened. Her lips twisted into a smile, and she sauntered to Kudo's side.

"What are you two doing in here all alone? You'll make me jealous, don't you know?" she spoke with affected lightness. She turned to the girl. "Did Kato tell you the good news yet? You were the one I wanted to be the first to know, since we are becoming such close friends." She lifted her hand and wiggled her fingers to draw attention to the enormous rock embedded there.

Kyoko smiled benignly but then let out a pernicious glare that lasted a blink of an eye, so short that Kudo was not sure that it actually happened. The effect of it, though, was imprinted on the other actress's face. Her eyes became huge, and she trembled as she took a step back. Although Kudo was sure that that expression came from pure terror of Kyoko, to the onlooker she appeared as if she was sincerely shocked that her new friend had stolen her love.

"I…I…didn't…" the actress stuttered. "Uh…I'm sorry…I…think I'll leave now…Congratulations…you two…" The girl stumbled out of the room, still nervous under Kyoko's predatory stare.

Kyoko remained in the same position. Wasn't it her line now? Why was she still staring at the door? Slowly Kyoko turned around. Kudo was surprised to see a painful expression of guilt on her face. She avoided his eyes, took a deep breath, and forced her mouth into that twisted smile once again.

Kyoko wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled down his face. "…Now that we're alone…" she murmured as she reached her face to his lips. Ah…Showtime. His mouth inched towards hers as his arms reached behind her back. The cameras could not see his hands slide lower and lower. Nor could they see his thumb and index finger as they pinched sharply. Kyoko's eyes flipped open.

His lips hovered a centimeter from her face. "If someone pushed you out of a plane, the flab of your butt would decimate an entire city. I thought actresses were supposed to take care of their bodies," he whispered.

That did it. Her eyes turned red, and the aura around her went black. Her hands wrapped around his neck where she quickly and effectively cut off his air passage.

"You asked for it, you imbecile," she growled as he gurgled and wheezed. His skin turned cold, and for a moment he swore he saw hundreds of floating demons pull his hair, bite his limbs, beat his chest, and taunt him with threats of how he was going to be cooked a flambé and devoured. Kyoko's reaction this time was definitely scarier than before.

"CUT. Tsuruga-san, let go of his neck. You're going to kill our lead actor!"

Kyoko blinked, and the aura around her faded. She released his throat, and he fell to the floor gasping for breath. Kudo was pretty sure he had just been forced through the CliffsNotes version of Dante's _Inferno_ but, looking at the director's furious expression, it was totally worth it.

"What the heck were you thinking? You might have been a big shot in the other dramas you've worked in, but here we don't suffocate our coworkers!" the director boomed.

Kyoko looked away and clenched her hands at her side. "I…apologize for my unprofessional behavior." Then, so softly that Kudo had to strain to hear, she murmured, "What the heck? That lecherous narcissist didn't even pass out. He hardly was 'suffocated'. Why do I have to be yelled at and not that moron who ruined the scene?"

Kudo snorted under his breath and had to actively fight the small smirk threatening to reach his lips.

The director was not appeased by her curt apology. "And what were you acting in that scene? I have told you again and again that I want a villain that audiences love to hate. Chouko is a detestable character whose main goal is to destroy the two heroes' love. What was with that guilty expression you looked at Emi-chan with?"

Kyoko took a deep breath and straightened her shoulders. "A woman who steals a man's love letters from his mailbox, sends fake letters back to the girlfriend, and chases him with no success for five years is not someone completely confident in herself. She would have gotten bored long ago if she were doing this just to create havoc between the two characters. It makes much more sense if Chouko is an insecure girl who pretends to be strong. She feels that what she is doing is wrong but hardens herself because she is terrified of losing the man she has made her crutch for all these years. And she feels dirty for all the things she has done whenever she looks into the face of—"

"Don't tell me about the character," the director snarled as he stomped up onto the set and loomed over Kyoko. "Emi-chan's character is pure and white, while yours is dark and black. You two serve as perfect contrasts. You're just trying to steal away all the attention from Emi-chan with your complex mumbo jumbo."

Kyoko did not retreat. She continued with a quiet but firm voice, "Generally speaking no one is completely black or white. People by nature have strengths and flaws, and we all have reasons for how we become like we are. Emi-chan's character can be done very deeply as well. If you just let me work with—"

The director's face turned red. "Just because you've made a couple of dramas and won a few awards, don't underestimate the work of a talented actress like Emi-chan. She is just as much a seasoned actress as you are."

Kudo's eyebrows went up, and most of the crew gaped at the director. The term "seasoned" was a farcical embellishment at best. The grand work of Emi-chan was as the spokesgirl for SnapiHapi Cellular Phones, where she donned a skimpy, Lolita style dress, shimmied her shoulders, and sang in a child-like voice, "If you call me with another, I weally would be sad. But with SnapiHapi Cellular I'm super duper glad." With her as the spokesgirl, sale of SnapiHapi phones doubled within a few months, but everyone knew that was on account to the amount of cleavage she showed in the commercials more than any hint of acting ability. Kudo glanced at the director's belt and caught sight of a SnapiHapi fluffy-plushy blue panda phone. Well, that explained the casting choice.

"You have no right to argue with me. You are a blacklisted actor. No one wants to work with you. The only reason you're here is because Director Shingai works as producer of this drama and demanded that you act in it. Frankly, I still haven't seen this unrivalled work ethic and natural acting talent he kept harping on. The fact that no one has given you a job in over a year is proof that your acting is shallow at best."

Whoa… Did this director even watch what was coming out of his mouth? It was true that Kyoko had been blackballed in the Entertainment industry, but everyone knew it had nothing to do with acting ability or work ethic. Anyone who watched her acting impartially knew that she was the only actor in Japan who could rival the great Tsuruga Ren (well, except for himself, of course). Tsuruga Ren might be better at picking up skills at incredible speeds and manipulating his co-stars like puppets, but Kyoko had him beat with her bold and creative interpretations of her characters and her innate talent for disappearing within a role.

Kudo looked around him. Half the crew avoided their eyes from the scene, and the other half looked at Kyoko sympathetically. Amazing… When she had first come on set, the crew was furious about having to work with someone like her and bullied her nonstop. Looking at the scene now, it appeared that she had won the hearts of most of them. Well, she still had not won over the director, and he was really the only one who counted. It would be impossible to break the director's prejudice. Kudo smiled. That worked just fine for him.

After glaring at Kyoko for some time, the director spun around and stomped off the set. "Let's take a twenty minute break so that the great Tsuruga Kyoko can get her act together and not waste our time," he sneered as he marched to the studio's door.

Kyoko listened to the door slam shut and let out a heavy sigh. Kudo picked himself up off the floor and leaned his elbow on her shoulder. "You should have just played the part the way he wanted it played. Then your life would have been a lot easier. Did you think sneaking in the character would convince the director to let you do what you want, Kyoko?"

Kyoko turned to glare at him. "And what the heck were you doing, Kudo-san? Picking on me off set and leaking made up stories about a clandestine romance between the two of us is one thing, but when you are intentionally messing around with work, you've crossed the line."

Kudo smirked and rested his chin on her shoulder. "Who says it's made up? And didn't I tell you to call me Aoki? Think of our relationship."

"Delusional dolt," she muttered. Then, without warning, Kyoko stepped out from under Kudo's weight. Kudo had to catch himself from completely tumbling to the ground. "Fine. I'll call you Aoki-kun, if you start calling me Tsuruga-san. You're right. It would fit our relationship better seeing as how I am two years older than you and we are nothing more than coworkers."

Kudo straightened himself up and checked around to see if anyone caught sight of his unflattering moment. Then he turned back at Kyoko and switched back on the smile. "TSURUGA-san sounds so formal and distant. Besides, Tsuruga isn't your real name, is it? Everyone knows that."

"No, Ren hasn't legally changed his name back yet, but you can call me Hizuri-san if you want. If you really want to call me something special, I give you permission to call me Hizuri-sama, but only when we're alone. It would be too embarrassing if you called me that in public." She turned away from him and began walking off the set. "Now excuse me, but I have some business with the director."

Dang it. He could not let Kyoko leave their verbal duel with the last word. Kudo caught her wrist and twisted her around to face him. "You're not going to be able to convince the director to do things your way. You've already tried to talk with him, argue with him, bribe him with food, and stalk him at his house. None of those methods worked. Whatever you are planning now will just get you into more trouble," he said as he stared into her eyes.

Kyoko pulled her wrist away and glared at him. "I don't need to hear this from a self-deluded coward who never made any attempt to try from the beginning. I've done enough running away in my life. From now on I'm going to stand up and fight with all I've got." With that she flipped back around and stomped out of the studio.

* * *

Ren pushed down his chin and shoved his baseball cap low over his face. If he acted normally, there would be no reason for the policeman a few meters away to take notice of him. He just needed to stay calm and blend in with the rest of the crowd. Ren gulped in a breath and walked swiftly past the man in the blue uniform. For a moment he thought he felt the policeman follow him with his eyes, but the officer quickly became distracted by the bawling six year old that commandeered his leg while he wailed for his mommy and smeared his ice cream all over the man's trousers.

Ren's shoulders relaxed slightly, but he quickened his steps to his destination under the banner "Mito's 5th Annual Music Festival: Rare Instrument Appraisal and Auction." His eyes scoured through the people gathered at various tables. Then he spotted him. A stout middle-aged man with a receding hairline and an outdated tweed suit was conversing with one of the antique specialists in a back corner. Ren forced his way through the crowd and positioned himself within hearing distance of the two men.

"…Amazing, Professor Tomohiro, absolutely amazing. This is definitely an early nineteenth century original crafted by Maelzel himself. Look at the craftsmanship of this. You don't see this in the electric versions people use nowadays."

"Isn't it? And the scratch right here? You don't think it could be the one mentioned in Beethoven's letters, do you?"

The assessor scrutinized the four-sided pyramid box and then sighed. "We have no way of telling. Right now it's worth in the million yen range. If you had proof of Beethoven's ownership, this object would be virtually priceless. You said that you just found it, didn't you? So, there's no way of backtracking the previous owner and seeing if he had any certificates or an idea how this piece found its way to Japan?"

Tomohiro looked at the object for a long time. "No," he said finally. "There's no way to do that, but maybe I can find something through my own research. Thank you for your help." Tomohiro picked up the wooden object carefully and turned to leave.

This was his chance. Ren snatched hold of the man's arm and jerked him to a halt. The man's gaze switched from surprise to annoyance. "May I help you?" he huffed.

Ren stared at the box and then tightened his grip. Red marks appeared on the man's flesh. "…I know what you did," Ren hissed.

"Excuse me?"

"If you think you are getting away with it, you are mistaken. I will hunt you to the ends of the earth if I have to."

The old man stared into Ren's dour eyes and then clicked his tongue. "I don't know what you are talking about. You must have the wrong person," he growled. "Now, excuse me." He yanked his arm out of Ren's grip, but this jerk sent the box tumbling out of his hands and onto the table beside him. The wooden door burst open and the pendulum began ticking away. Tick…tick…tick…chh…tick…tick…tick…chh. Ren froze. The sound caused his head to buzz, and Ren winced at the pain. He reached over to stop the oscillating piece of metal, but the older man slapped his hand away. The man quickly gathered the box in his hands and sprinted off into the crowd. Ren watched him as he disappeared. Then his eyes molded into a threatening glare.

"Cut. Fantastic job once again, Tsuruga-san. We don't need to do any retakes. Why don't you guys take a well deserved break, and in a few minutes we can continue with the next scene," the director boomed through his megaphone. "Thanks for your work today."

All around Ren, people chatted excitedly as they watched him head out from under the camera's line of sight. The older man from the last scene approached him and actually giggled as he shook Ren's hand and bowed, telling Ren that working opposite him was the highlight of his life. His marriage to his wife and the birth of his children followed closely behind, of course. Ren politely smiled and thanked him. Then he headed to where his manager stood.

"Good work today," said Yashiro as he handed him a bottle of water. "You seem especially tense in your scenes today. It really gets the viewers wrapped up in Sato's quest."

Ren gave Yashiro a half smile as he occupied himself with twisting off the bottle cap. As he tipped the bottle up to his lips, however, he noticed that Yashiro was glaring at him.

"…What?" he asked, as he grew nervous under Yashiro's incessant stare.

"…You played that scene a little too intense, if you ask me."

Ren looked at him oddly. "The director seemed to think it was all right," he defended.

Yashiro snorted. "Other than what you did a couple days ago, you could sneeze on a piece of paper, and everyone would call it art. Not that that is bad, mind you. And you did do well in that scene, but I'm not an idiot who has been with you for a decade and can't tell when you are purely acting or when you are putting yourself into the scene. You are really tense about something. What's going on?"

Ugghh. This was not something Ren wanted to talk about right now. He had been struggling all day not to think about it.

"I don't know what you are talking about, Yashiro-san," he stated, as he pulled out the script from Yashiro's hand and flipped through it in an effort to transmit the message "I don't want discuss it. Please shut up now" over the airways and into Yashiro's dogged mind.

"Was Kyoko-chan awake last night? Did she tell you off for coming in so late?"

Ren's arms and face tightened up. "…No…She didn't say anything bad. Who said it had to do with Kyoko?"

"Your moods are always about Kyoko-chan," stated Yashiro. "Hmmm…. If you aren't mad that she yelled at you, then you are probably upset…at not having enough time to spend with her. My wife wanted me to invite the two of you over for dinner, but I think it would be better to let you have some more alone time tonight."

Ren sighed in exasperation. "Do you know where the director went? I think if I could improvise a small part in the next scene, I could portray Sato's feelings more effectively."

"Hmm? Oh, a grip said something about someone waiting for him in the administration room. I'll show you where it is."

Yashiro guided him through the large convention center and to a small room closed off from the rest of the building. Curtains hung in the windows.

"…Let me see if it's safe to interrupt them," he said as he slid open the door a crack and glanced inside.

Yashiro remained frozen in that peeping tom position for an oddly prolonged moment. Then with the same speed as a housewife snatching up the last hundred yen mackerel from the rest of the shopping mob, Yashiro slammed the door shut and spun back towards Ren with panic in his eyes. "Let's…let's let them talk alone for a bit. …It looks important. You could ask the director your question after he returns to the filming area," he sputtered out.

He snatched onto Ren's coat sleeve and had pulled him several meters away from the office before Ren even realized he was moving. When did Yashiro become this strong? And what the heck was he so scared of Ren seeing? In the distance Ren heard the door slide open. Curious, he glanced over his shoulder. What he saw made him stop immediately. Yashiro was caught completely off guard, and he flung backwards into Ren's chest and slid onto the floor. Ren remained still. There, coming out of the office, was the director and a face Ren knew all too well. The man's features seemed a shade more angular and his body appeared slightly stockier, but he still wore that same cocky expression Ren remembered from seven years before. Ren watched as the director spoke something to the man with a smile and then shook the man's hand. They both gave their farewells and parted. The director left to the filming site, and the man headed to the building's exit. Neither spotted Ren or Yashiro.

After he observed that both men were completely out of sight, Yashiro slowly picked himself off the ground and gave Ren a nervous glance. "…He must be here to talk about the theme song that he's writing for the film," he said. "…I…don't think it has anything to do with you. …Why don't we go talk to the director now?"

Ren had not moved at all. His eyes had not left the spot where the man once stood. "He still dyes his hair blond," he muttered, after a long pause.

Yashiro eyed Ren, clearly confused, but Ren remained silent. His jaw clenched up as his hand formed a fist at his side.

* * *

"What…the heck…is this?" Kudo breathed with his eye glued to the crack in the door and his body crouched up in a ball. He had followed Kyoko to watch her fail once again at her feeble plans of persuasion…but he never expected this. No begging, no weeping, no declarations of quitting or fake suicide threats. Instead, as the director lay unconscious on the couch, Kyoko tussled merrily around his office decorating the room like an overexcited new bride. …This was her master plan. She should know by now that she could never win over the director's respect. To the director she was the furry white mold that proliferated its soldiers on the leftover rice and forced the rice into a smelly, oppressive dictatorship, and if he was forced to work with her, he would not tolerate her to have any creative input in this project. But here she was hanging up posters, moving in statues, and generally tidying up the place. Kudo faintly heard the sound of scissors but could not see what she was cutting. Must be some craft thing girls always liked to do. Who knew the famous Tsuruga Kyoko was so housewifey?

Back in sight, Kyoko let out a deep sigh. She brushed off her hands and smiled at her work. Then she bent over a new bag and pulled out the oddest of items. What the? Was that even safe? She tied on lit candles around her forehead. Was she planning a murder/suicide because she was that upset about the role? He always thought Kyoko took her job too seriously, but this was over the top.

"Hummmdoooommsstoocoooomeommmm." Was Kyoko chanting? Kudo squirmed around to find a better view. "I evoke the evil spirits to curse you. Give me a chance to act out Chouko right or you will find yourself in your worst nightmare. Do not discriminate against me anymore or my curse will plummet onto you without mercy and you will reach the fate you have been dreading all your life. Hummmm. Remember, no matter where you go, my eyes are always watching you. Ooomm." After a pause, she walked back in sight as she took off the candles and blew them out. Then she gathered her bags and turned to exit the room. Kudo was about to slide away from the door, but when she abruptly stopped, Kudo froze as well. Her eyes stared at something on the wall in an exhausted sort of way. Then she caught what she was doing, shook her head fiercely, and slid back on her fallen smile. She pushed open the door, and Kudo found his body suddenly crushed by the weight of the door swinging into the back of his head.

As the door swung back to a close, Kudo watched Kyoko prance away in a confident mood. …She seriously did not think that 'cursing' the man was going to solve all her problems, did she? As quietly as possible, Kudo snuck into the room and took a closer look at the decorations Kyoko had put up. That girl must be mentally unbalanced. There did not seem to be a link to any of it. Kudo walked over and shook the recumbent body sprawled on the couch.

The man's eyes shot open in a flash, and he sprung to sitting position, pummeling Kudo's nose in the process. "Wha…What's going on? Where am I?" he babbled as he frantically flipped his head around.

Kudo cradled his nose in his hand. …That really hurt. If it left any mark, he was going to sue the butt off this director for damaging his precious merchandise. "Ouch…Relax… You're in your office. The break is almost over, and its time for us to get back to work."

The director shot his eyes to Kudo. Slowly his rapid breathing relaxed, and his clouded eyes cleared. "Oh…It's you, Kudo-kun. I just had the most awful nightmare that…" His voice cracked to a stop, and his eyes nearly popped out as he stared at the room. A promotion poster was hung with Edo period samurai dressed in kimonos and topknots. Another poster showed Michael Jordan making a jump shot. In one corner sat a rotund gold Buddha laughing up a storm. In the other corner a stuffed bald eagle was lifting its wings for flight. The director stood up in a daze and stumbled to the coffee table where two dated photographs stood side by side. Cautiously, he picked them up. Kudo looked over his shoulder. Odd. Though the two photographs were both of men from much older time periods, they looked very similar to the director…well, except that they were both missing their…

"Give me a mirror," the director growled.

"Wha…"

"Are all actors airheads? A mirror. Now."

Kudo reached in his pocket and pulled out the small compact he always carried. The director snatched it, flipped it open, and started examining his head. He gasped as he touched his forehead. He twisted his neck and checked behind him. A louder gasp. He flew over to the sofa on which he was laying moments before. Short, black strands lay scattered like soldier's bodies across a battlefield. With care he picked each one up and cradled them in his hand. A look of mourning was sketched on his face.

This was getting out of control. Kudo put his hand on the director's shoulder. "Relax," he said. "This is all Tsuruga Kyoko's plot to break you. She was the one who set this all up. Pathetic really. I even saw her doing this silly little curse…"

"Curse?" The director shot his face up, and horror shone out of his eyes.

Kudo crinkled his brow in disbelief. "…You don't seriously believe in all that voodoo bull?"

The director looked down. "…No…no, of course not," he mumbled as his hand absentmindedly reached up to the side of his head. His eyes grew darker. "That girl is asking to be crushed."

Kudo smiled. As he strode out of the office, he glanced over to what caught Kyoko's attention earlier. It was a photograph that had been on the man's wall for years. The director stood with his hand on the young Tsuruga Ren's shoulder on the last day of the drama "Mars Cluster". Both wore triumphant smiles on their faces.

Filming began again, and Kudo watched as Kyoko acted with Emi-chan on stage.

"Cut. Stop filming," the megaphone boomed. "Tsuruga-san, you are one step away from being fired."

Perfect. The director was angry. Served that girl right.

"You think you are so great? You want me to read what the newspaper writes about you? It says here that…" Silence. The director's face turned white, while his mouth swung open and close like a carp out of water. Kudo glanced over to where the director was staring. Besides the small promotion piece on their drama, Patrick Stewart's face peered out from under the headline, "Star Trek Movie Sequel Number Thirty-four In the Works".

The director looked up, visibly shaking. "On...on second thought…just do what you were doing. …I might as well see what you are trying to do before I reject it."

Kyoko grin broke past the sides of her face, and she started bowing repeatedly in gratitude. What a shameless girl…and what a spineless director. It looked like he had to take control of things himself. As Kyoko continued to gush out praises to the director about how noble and virile the director was, Kudo wandered over to where Emi-chan stood.

"How are you doing acting opposite Tsuruga Kyoko?" he asked casually as he stood beside her.

Emi watched through her fake glasses as Kyoko forced the director down to give him a Kyoko shoulder rub special. "She's scary but totally amazing. Look how she changed the director. ...I wish I had super powers like her."

"Oh, you don't want super powers like that. The way she cheaply throws herself around to get what she wants. A pure hearted girl like you should never think of going as far as she goes," Kudo spoke quietly.

"What are you talking about? Weren't you the one drooling after her and harassing her since the first day like a dog in heat?"

Ouch…whatever happened to Emi's innocently sweet persona? Well, he needed to bring out his secret weapon. He drooped his eyes up and puckered his lips. He allowed his eyelashes to flutter. Not very manly but effective. Emi looked like she did not know what hit her.

"Actually, Kyoko has been forcing me to chase her around," he spoke, his voice dropping pathetically. "She was actually jealous of you. She knew that I liked you and blackmailed me into pretending I was in love with her. And look at the director. She was alone with him in his office for ten minutes, and he comes out with that completely changed attitude. Don't pretend you don't know what that means." Kudo bent to kiss her cheek. The girl stared at him and then turned bright red. Perfect. His job was done. He sauntered back off the set.

The director was in the process of dodging Kyoko's helping hands as he clutched his head fearfully. "Enough of this…" he shouted while shivering. "I'm not saying that I agree to your Chouko, just that I'll watch it for one take. Ladies, get on set."

Kyoko jumped back to starting position, but Emi held her place. "No!" she called out.

The director glanced over confused. "What?"

"I refuse to work with that manipulative hussy," she spoke. All people on set turned to stare at the girl.

After a long pause, the director was the first to speak. "…Weren't you the one begging me to allow Tsuruga-san to give you acting lessons a week ago?"

Emi's face turned red in embarrassment. "I don't care what I said before. I don't want to work with a woman like her. Rewrite the scene with her out, or I'm quitting."

Kudo looked over to Kyoko. Her eyes were frozen onto Emi's form. Well, it served her right. Anyone who pretended to be on some moral high horse deserved to be trampled on by her own beast.

* * *

"…That's a wrap. Tsuruga-san…good…job today. …You're free to go now."

Ren relaxed his arms and lowered the metal pipe he had positioned at a fellow actor's still trembling form. He wiped the sweat off his forehead and handed the makeshift weapon and towel to the stagehand, whose eyes watched him warily. As he walked off the set people pushed themselves out of his way and stared at him as he strode past.

"Are you ready to go?" Ren asked Yashiro as he slid off Sato's heavy jacket.

For the first time since the scene ended, Yashiro's stupefied eyes blinked. "…Oh…right. …Why don't you get changed while I finish things here and I'll meet you by the car."

Ren nodded and left to the costuming trailer to rid himself of the Sato's attire. As he strolled back towards his car, a man wearing sunglasses raced by. His lenses reflected a small scroll monitor the man was anxiously flipping through. Two girls were giggling on a bench over something on the screen they held in their hands. Ren was rather surprised that their cell phone was shaped and painted as his own head. …Creepy. Luckily, the girls were too engrossed with their phone to notice the real Tsuruga Ren walk by. Slowly, Ren reached into his wallet and pulled out the thin rectangular screen. It took all of yesterday and much of this morning to figure out how to turn this stupid thing on. Ren pressed down his left ring finger on the center of the screen, and suddenly the screen brightened and the banner "Welcome back, Tsuruga-san" flew across the screen. Fingerprint password protection. What a pain in the neck, and this meant that Ren had no chance in tricking Yashiro into helping him with this contraption either. Ren pressed on the computer icon in the lower corner. The all too familiar screen popped up, "We care about your financial security. Credit card and Internet capabilities require the special AFPI password. Please put it down now." Well, thirty-third time the charm. Ren pressed his right pinky on the screen. Red screen. "We're sorry. That was not the right password." What the heck did they want? He had gone through all of his fingers. Was he supposed to take off his shoes and move onto his toes? A new screen popped up. "We have noted unusual activity on this phone. Please keep the phone on as the task force investigates thi—" Ren slammed his finger on the off icon.

Internet was everywhere, but it seemed like he was the only one who had no access to it. Well, it might be for the best. Ren was not altogether sure he wanted to see what he wanted to look up. He had been a hair away from losing it this afternoon. Seeing Fuwa Sho so unexpectedly, he was dangerously close to strangling that idiot and demanding answers to his suspicions. His fist actually itched to be embedded in Fuwa's face. That would have made a great article. "Tsuruga Ren viciously attacked Fuwa Sho on set today. When asked why he did so, Tsuruga admitted to having no real reason, but upon further questioning he admitted to being a time traveler from seven years in the past. Hundreds of tearful fans line up outside Tokyo Matsuzawa Psychiatric Hospital to wish him the best at his new permanent residence."

…He definitely needed to calm down. He had jumped to conclusions about Kyoko's actions before, and he had found himself worrying over nothing…or more correctly, the wrong thing. But the more and more he thought about it today, the more he was dead sure that that was Fuwa Sho in the car last night. What was Fuwa doing with his wife in the middle of the night? No…calm down. Fuwa Sho causing problems was nothing new. He probably went to his house to annoy Kyoko but found she was asleep. That's right. Ren must have been mistaken about the bedroom's light being on. Kyoko could not have been lying about being asleep. Although a great actor, Kyoko was transparent when it came to lying. Last night she did not stutter, shake, avoid his eyes, or burst out apologies while bent in a dogeza on the floor. Her actions were seamless. She acted odd with the note, but that could have been for any number of reasons. It was probably just a harassment letter from that idiot. Fuwa Sho was just being the troublemaker he always is. Pathetic, really. Kyoko was married to Ren. Fuwa already lost. Still, the reporter's implication thundered in his ears. What the hell was the "Fuwa Sho incident"?

Yashiro waited for him by his car as he held a bright cellophane wrapped basket. "One of the staff seems to have left this for you. It's a little bit late but a rather sweet sentiment." Inside were a bottle of wine and an assortment of fruits and cheeses. In the center was a handcrafted sign that read, "Happy Anniversary, the Tsuruga Couple. Here's to wishing many more years of happiness." Yashiro stashed it in the back as he slid into the passenger's seat.

As Ren situated himself in his own seat, Yashiro's sharp gaze flipped to him. "I know you have been out of sorts since this morning, and seeing Fuwa here probably brought up some memories and issues that you were not expecting to have to deal with, but your mood has been affecting work and that's not okay," he spoke in a reprimanding voice.

Ren did not look up from turning the key in the ignition. "I don't know what you are talking about. I thought that I acted particularly well today," he mumbled.

"Yeah. You did. But they had to do a scene five times because all of the flowers withered into stubble as you walked by with your suffocating aura."

Ren's hands paused from setting the gears. "Flowers cannot wilt because of someone's 'aura'. They were just overheated by the camera lights."

Yashiro rolled his eyes. "Whatever it was, you were way too into your acting today. I think most of the crew was afraid that you would jump up and strangle them at any moment in search for news about your dead fictitious wife. You going to talk to me about what is actually wrong with you?"

Ren's eyes faced straight forward. Should he talk? Was it possible to ask Yashiro questions without raising his suspicions? The offer was tempting, but would Ren be able control himself once he started? Ren glanced over at Yashiro hesitantly. "What do you know about…" He stopped.

Yashiro looked confused at Ren's pause. "…About what?" he coaxed.

"…About…time travel." That's right. This was what he was supposed to be figuring out. Everything else was none of his business. "I…got handed a script, and it seems interesting. A man wakes up seven years into his future and has to pretend to be his future self until he finds his way back. But the script was only finished part way. How does he return?"

"He shoots the screenwriter. What a ridiculous and overused plot, and what a stupid main character. Why are you talking about work? I want to hear about your personal problems."

Ren gritted his teeth. "I'm serious. What do you think happens in the end?"

Yashiro rolled his eyes and leaned back in his seat. "Well, its obvious that he will find a way back to his old time. The audience gets anxious if everything doesn't go back to normal. In most cases he would leave using an odd piece of technology. A mechanical time machine. An old, beat up DeLorean. A magic hourglass. An antique British police box. A phone call to a man with a goatee named Rufus. A government sponsored device run by convoluted pseudo-physics that lets someone leap into other people's anatomical forms. That sort of a thing."

"…There doesn't seem to be anything like that written in the script."

Yashiro shrugged. "The next choice is the whole natural phenomenon thing. He flies through a wormhole or black hole…Really anything with a 'hole' in it."

"He's not an astronaut."

"It doesn't have to be in space. There could be some type of time hole in the city. He just has to leap off of some recognizable landmark like Tokyo Tower, or Rainbow Bridge, or Mount Fuj—"

"Next option."

Yashiro thought for a moment. "It could be a dream sequence. He just needs to hit his head or get in a car crash to wake himself up."

"I tried that." The bruise on Ren's forehead still throbbed.

"…Huh?"

"I mean…he tried that." That was close.

"Has he seen a ghost or angel?"

"No…don't be ridiculous."

Yashiro looked annoyed. "How is this whole thing not ridiculous? Well, how about this…I saw it in a movie once. He sits absolutely still and concentrates really hard on going back home." Ren looked at him. Sounded stupid, but sadly it was the best plan of action he heard so far. Yashiro continued, "Of course all his emotions about the future time have to be clear. No one goes back home in a time travel flick until everything is settled. There. I've answered your question. Now are you going to tell me what's really bothering you or am I going to have to force it out of you?"

Ren's mind was still in turmoil as he drove his last leg home alone. That was right. He was supposed to be focusing on going back to the past. He should not be wasting time worrying about Fuwa here. Ren just had to find a way home and discreetly murder Fuwa in the past. That way, Ren would never have to worry about his actions in the future. Well, he might not legally be able to murder that idiot, but he would make darn sure that idiot's relations to Kyoko was completely broken off. He certainly would have that right knowing that Kyoko was his future wife. Ren drove past the length of road where he had met the red Ferrari last night. His hands tightened onto the wheel. A vivid image came to his mind where Kyoko was swung around Fuwa's neck. "Sorry, Ren darling," she spoke. "I thought I loved you, but I guess that my hatred of Sho just stemmed from too much love for him. Singers really do have more exciting lives." As she reached up to kiss that moron, Fuwa turned and flashed Ren a cocky smirk.

"Out of my head!" Ren growled. Talking to himself now… Glad Yashiro was not here to see that. But…come to think of it, that image was completely wrong. The Kyoko he knew hated Fuwa Sho. Fuwa would have had to do something enormous to get her to forgive him… wouldn't he? Besides, Ren might be seven years in the future, but Kyoko was still Kyoko. Just as Ren knew that he would never betray Kyoko, Kyoko was not the type of girl to have an aff… to break her marriage vows either. She was the most traditional and trustworthy girl he knew. Besides, even if his marriage was having problems, she was the type to attack and yell at Ren directly. She was not the type of person to do things behind his back.

That thought actually did make him feel better. He pulled into his driveway and unbuckled his seatbelt. He could curse himself. Why was he wasting time doubting Kyoko? Kyoko was sitting inside his house right now pregnant with his child. She had been trying to keep as quiet as possible, but he knew that she spent much of her mornings and afternoons with her head swung over the toilet. If anything was happening, it was all on Fuwa's side, and he should stop worrying so much about it.

Ren approached the entrance and adjusted the gift basket in his arms. His hand rested on the doorknob, but what he heard through the door made him freeze.

"—I can't deny it any longer. I've tried so hard to forget about you, but I can't. Everywhere I go and see it's you in my mind. I'm tired of pretending that there is nothing going on between the two of us," Kyoko's muffled voice cried out.

"But what about—" A man's voice. ...Was it…his? Ren clenched the doorknob.

"Forget about anyone else. Sure, other people will get hurt, but don't we deserve happiness? I don't want to live my life just doing what I'm supposed to do any longer."

"But…"

"Just kiss me." All right. Ren was one second away of storming in and following up with that murder plot he thought up in the car.

"…I'll do that, but are you sure you're of legal age? Your chest is flatter than a kindergartner. Really…no fun at all."

"DIE, MORON!" Kyoko's voice boomed out. A sharp thump was heard.

…Did Kyoko just follow up with his murder plot for him? Ren threw open the door, and it crashed to the wall. What he saw was a scene Ren would probably remember for the rest of his life. Kyoko looked at him surprised with her arm around a man neck. This man stared straight at Ren with a smirk on his face, which was odd as he had a butcher's knife sticking straight out from his chest. After a moment's pause, Kyoko quickly swung her arm off the man's neck. This caused him to come to terms with balance and gravity, and Ren watched as the two centimeter thick man came crashing face first to the ground.

"…Whaatt kkinnd oof kisss wwass thaatt? Iitt'ss nott aaa kisss withooutt soomme ttou—"

Kyoko jumped down and flipped off the voice recorder switch strapped to the back of the man's head. Hesitantly, she glanced up. "…Tou…tuti fruity lip gloss…was what he was going to say," she nervously spoke. She then picked up the man and pulled the butcher knife out of his chest. "This isn't too bad," she muttered. "He's still reusable."

Ren looked at her uncertainly. "…What are you doing?" he asked.

Kyoko looked as if she was caught stealing the last cookie. "…Acting practice," she finally spoke. "I'm getting better."

Ren looked around the room. Besides the cardboard cutout in front of him, its identical twins filled the rest of the living room, though their fate looked much worst. Some were decapitated. Some had their limbs chewed off. Some had unflattering drawings of pimples and Satan goatees scribbled all over their faces. Most had something chucked through them. One surprisingly had stuffed animals shot through its body. That must have been quite a throw to give that fluffy pig enough velocity to be lodged through the man's mouth.

Ren looked back at Kyoko. "Is your role Godzilla?"

"No," spoke Kyoko as she heaved a great sigh and fell onto the couch. "It's for _Winter Solstice_. I keep letting my personal feelings for the co-actor show up on screen."

…Personal feelings? Ren glanced over to one cardboard man who had his eyes literally burned out. "Co-actor…That wouldn't happen to be the 'singer and now up and coming actor Kudo Aoki', would it?"

Kyoko looked at him hesitantly. "Yes. …Why are you smiling?"

"…Oh, no reason. Go on."

Kyoko sighed. "He keeps going out of character when he knows that the sound would be muted in the final version. At first I stayed in Chouko's character, but after hearing his childish jokes, she smacked him across his face, swore that all the years of fantasizing about him was a waste of her life, and swore never to see him again…which, you know, is probably the best thing for her, but it completely eliminates the drama's plot for the next ten episodes. So I decided to quickly switch back into myself for those soundless scenes today, but my reaction was…worse. I've been working with these Aiko dummies to see if I can better control myself."

"I…see."

Kyoko stared at the Kudo-cutout for a moment and then glanced back at him. Suddenly her eyes grew wide in shock.

"Oh, I haven't even said hello! You got home early. Was there not much traffic today? Sorry about the mess. I thought I could clean it up before you got here. Let me help you with your coat. Are you hungry?"

"Uh…no, not really."

"Good. Let's go make some dinner." Kyoko spotted the basket in Ren's hand. "Is that for me? How sweet… You shouldn't have." Kyoko took the basket and examined it more carefully. Her eyebrow cocked up. "Giving alcohol to your pregnant wife… You really shouldn't have…"

Ren had completely forgotten the thing was in his hand. He followed Kyoko as she moved her way to the kitchen. "It's not from me. It's a belated anniversary gift to the both of us from a staff member at work."

Kyoko stopped and turned to him with astonishment etched on her face. She examined the package closely like it was a disguised bomb about to explode and then read the small sign poking out from the middle. She looked back up at Ren and an enormous smile was glowing off her face. "What a wonderful person! And you can't get an assortment of cheese like this easily in Japan."

The two began cooking, but somehow it wound up with Ren in front of the small Korean style grill. "What are you doing? You're burning the meat," Kyoko chided Ren as she sat on the counter next to him.

Wow, that piece was getting burned. Why were they all getting done at the same time? Couldn't they each just wait until Ren was ready to work with them? "…That's how I like my meat," Ren mumbled as he pulled the blackened piece off the grill and went to save the next piece.

Kyoko rolled her eyes. "Stop lying. You like your beef medium rare." She reached her hand through the cellophane and into the gift basket besides her. "Odd. This basket has napkins that have 'Phoenix Moonlight Bar' imprinted on them. Did this person nab these while visiting Arizona? A secret Japanese tourist paper napkin thief? I hope that doesn't cause any diplomatic issues to blow up." She pulled out a shiny red apple and took a large bite. "So how is work going?" she asked

Ren looked up from his meat scramble. "Good," he said. "Really good actually. The staff is friendly and professional, and the plot is exciting. Moreover, I find that I can easily identify with the character, which seems to help my acting seem more authentic."

Kyoko's face turned serious, and her smile faded away. "I know," she muttered as she stared at her half eaten apple. "That's why you took the part in the first place."

Ren looked over to her confused. What did he say that put her in such a despondent mood? "…How are things going with your drama? Well…other than the issues with your co-actor."

A pause, and then Kyoko lifted her face with her beaming smile back on. "Oh, everything is great," she said as she slid off the counter and grabbed the plate of Ren's finished charcoal meat. "Everyone seems to really like me, and it's a real blast working with everybody on set. Don't worry about me." Kyoko set the meat on the table and sat down.

Ren turned off the grill and joined her. As he sat down, the dilapidated cat he had spotted his first morning here jumped on his lap and started meowing for its share of meat. "It doesn't seem like everything is all right if the actor is harassing you with such inappropriate jokes," he said as he scooped some meat and vegetables onto his plate and snuck a small morsel to the furry scrounger. "Talk to the director about it. It makes me rather angry that you have to put up with that kind of stuff."

Kyoko had been eyeing the cat on his lap as it struggled to gobble down the rock meat without choking with an odd displeased look, but as Ren finished speaking, she flipped her head up. "Huh?" she questioned. Then, with an odd glint in her eye, "...Oh, if you're willing to help me for a bit after dinner, I think I know of a different way to get him to shut up."

After the two of them finished dinner, Ren found himself in the exact same position as the executed Kudo dummies. "You want to do what?" he asked incredulously.

"Seduce him. It's the only way," said Kyoko as she fussed with his outfit to make him look more in character.

"I don't see how this is a good idea at all."

"Well, I've been thinking. The only way I can act the way I should is if he acts the way he should. Now the scene is that I'm the one chasing him. He is really in love with the female lead's character but feels betrayed by her. The expression that he should have in this scene is one where he looks baffled deciding whether he should be true to his feelings and go back to Emi-chan or try to fall for me and forget about her. Since I am not the main driver for his feelings, I've been thinking that there's no way for me to force out that expression, but it occurred to me tonight that that expression looks very similar to a man who's facing a girl who had just taken her clothes off and is bewildered as to how he got there."

"You're going to take your clothes off?"

"No, just metaphorically speaking."

"I think I still object to you taking your clothes off metaphorically speaking."

"Stop talking. Just stand there and get ready to be seduced. If I can get you to show that expression than I can definitely shut that man up."

It suddenly occurred to Ren that he was in a rather dangerous spot. Kyoko primped her hair and stood opposite him…and stared at him for a long while.

"…I just thought of something," she finally said, breaking the silence. "I'm not really the seductress type." Her face sank. "What was I doing all this time? I should have read more corny, cheap romance novels for this par… What a minute…I can think of a human example I can model her on. Okay, let's start again." Ren stared at her with trepidation as she prepared herself once more to act out the scene.

Kyoko's voice rang out, this time huskier and more passionate than what he heard before. "—I can't deny it any longer. Everywhere I go and everything I see, it's you in my mind. I'm tired of pretending that there is nothing going on between the two of us." Kyoko's eyes had not left his eyes. They seemed to force him down in his spot. "Forget about everyone else. Don't we deserve happiness? I don't want to live my life just doing what I'm supposed to do any longer."

Oh, that was right. He was supposed to be attempting to break Kyoko's character like her co-actor. He opened his mouth to speak but froze when he saw how her expression changed. Her eyes held a power he had never seen in Kyoko before. It made him both want to run away and never move from his spot again. Only one name for it came to his mind…Queen of the Night, and not the fat opera character either. Kyoko slid one hand slowly up the front of his chest and softly around his neck. Then her other hand moved up, and her thumb grazed his lips.

She moved closer to him, and her breath grazed his skin as she whispered, "Have you ever kissed someone?"

The fact that he very much had made no impact to the fact that his conscious was now screaming "Danger Zone" at the top of its lungs, but his body had absolutely no ability to move.

Kyoko pulled his face down by his tie. "Shall I teach you how?" she purred as her eyebrows rose suggestively. This all seemed very familiar, but Ren was not able to process it further as his lips were commandeered by Kyoko's sensual mouth. Something in the back of his mind warned him to stop, but a greater voice justified that if she was offering free lessons, he might as well sit at the desk like a good boy and call her sensei.

Kyoko released his lips. "…I win," she quietly triumphed.

Ren looked down at her. "…Complain to the director. You are absolutely not allowed to do this with—" Kyoko rushed her lips back to his mouth.

...He really needed to get control of the situation or… Ren felt her hands slide up his back. His body burned for her touch. His thought process was quickly turning into white noise, but one thought struggled to make its was through. Was he really allowed to be doing this? Kyoko released his mouth and started sticking butterfly kisses to his neck. Who knew butterflies could burst into fireworks? Well, she was his wife. It would be ridiculous to claim that a married man was not allowed to do this. Ren pulled her closer to him and kissed her passionately back.

Ren's mind was now to the elementary point of cognition. He loved her hands softly caressing his hair. Her lips tasted so good. Did someone leave the heater on? How did they teleport to the bedroom door? Her body felt so soft. What was the purpose of them wearing so much clothing?

Kyoko sighed as he slid his hand underneath the lining of her clothing and onto the silky skin of her back. Her sound jolted Ren's mind back to life. She was not his wife. Kyoko's hands caressed his collarbone. Well, she was going to be in the future. Kyoko fiddled with his top button. His future self wouldn't mind too much, would he? He pushed Kyoko down onto the bed and passionately forced his lips back onto hers.

Then he froze. Yes, his future self very much would mind this. It made no logical sense, but if Ren was married to Kyoko, he was very much sure that he expected to be present each and every time something like this occurred. If he were his future self, he would send a terminator or something back to the past to eliminate his imprudent self. Ren looked down at Kyoko as she worked down his shirt buttons. Kyoko… She had no idea that he was not her husband. He had just abandoned her during her doctor's engagement, and here Ren was jumping into a new situation to hurt her. Ren sighed.

Kyoko had completely undone his shirt and moved her mouth back to his as she began to pull off his shirt with her hands. At the same time Ren pulled himself up with his arms. Kyoko was left puckering in the air, and she opened her eyes confused.

"I can't do this," Ren whispered.

Kyoko pulled her lips back to their normal position. "…Huh?"

Ren struggled to force his breathing back to normal. "…I need to go downstairs."

Kyoko stared at him. "…Now?" she questioned after a long pause.

Ren turned his head away. Looking at Kyoko in that prone position under him was making things much more difficult. "I…I still haven't memorized the script for tomorrow. I need to go and work on it."

Kyoko blinked. "…Aren't you acting the subway chase scene tomorrow? It doesn't have any words."

"…There's still stuff I need to work on…Like facial expressions, running fast...and…stuff."

Kyoko stared at him. Ren noticed her arms were still frozen holding his shirt half way down his shoulders. "…Now?"

Ren pulled himself up and off the bed. "…So I'll come back to bed after I…am done with everything I need to do. Go on and go to sleep. Don't wait up for me." Kyoko continued to stare at him. Ren pulled his shirt back on his shoulders, gave an awkward smile to Kyoko, backed himself to the door, and exited the room.

Ren leaned against the door and sighed. Then slowly he ambled down the stairs and into the kitchen. He traipsed over to the refrigerator, opened the freezer door, and stuck his head in. …Id…i…ot... Ren let the frigid air freeze his fevered head and sighed again. What the heck was he thinking? Slowly he took his head out and looked around the room. Desperate for something to distract him, Ren moved over to the gift basket. Slowly, he unwrapped the cellophane and unloaded the perishable items to store in the refrigerator. As he took out the wine bottle, he noticed the napkins Kyoko had mentioned earlier. …It was rather odd for American napkins to be there. Ren moved his hand to pick them up, but something caught his eye. He shuffled through them and pulled out one hidden in the middle. Sure enough…it had handwritten writing on it. Ren pulled it out and read the spiky, ornamental cursive:

This is in thanks for your gift today.

Don't worry. None of the food is poisoned.

Best wishes on getting your work and family affairs in order.

From your Apartment 31 mistress,

Caitlyn Nox

P.S. Say hi to your wife for me.

* * *

Notes:

Hmmm. I was sick when I finished up this chapter. When I was no longer heavily drugged with cold medicine, I reread the note that I had written (Thanks Piacine-Jadeymay for bringing it to my attention) and realized that the only way that note made sense was if you squinted your eyes, bashed your head into the wall, and then consulted the little birdies flying over your head for help. This note is more concise and fits better with the story. I sincerely apologize if this chapter registers as updated when I change it. I know that it is disappointing when you expect a new chapter and its not there. On the other hand, there is another extra in the author's page (he he..."couple of days"). Thank you so much for the support!


	5. Chapter 5: Physician's Temperament

Disclaimer: Skip Beat! and its characters are not mine...but that doesn't seem to stop me from torturing them.

* * *

**Ludwig's Metronome**

**Chapter 5: The Physician's Temperament**

"…Heee's an alien."

The burly looking reporter glanced down at the wide-eyed neophyte. "Old news, newbie. Everyone knows he's foreign born. That story won't even make the lifestyle section."

"No! I mean the rocketed to earth, terrified of green rocks, club house in the North Pole type of alien. He just spent an hour performing feats that would bring any stunt man to shame and now he is walking around like he just had a relaxing spot of tea with the British prime minister. There is definitely something inhuman about THAT!"

"That's Tsuruga Ren for you. Nothing like us normal people. The untouchable god of the acting world. We would be barking up the wrong tree if we thought we could catch him being anything other than 150% perfect."

Ren glanced over to the infestation of reporters calling to him as he entered the trailer. He gave them a gentlemanly smile and nod before he shut the door. …Breathe. One…two…three. No good. All it took was one imaginary voice to yell "Timber!" and Ren went crashing face first to the floor. …Nostalgic…the grime on the ground tasted like his mother's cooking. Ren used all his strength to turn his head. Was it his imagination or was jumping off the top of a speeding subway car, rolling down a six meter mud embankment, and then immediately pulling himself up to sprint away in a high speed chase scene much more painful than before? Muscles he did not know he had ached and cursed him for his reckless career choice. …Maybe he would not be hurting so much if he were not so exhausted. He could count on one hand the hours of sleep he had since he woke up in this future, but last night was the worst. Ren spent the totality of the night with his back flat on the living room couch, eyes firmly glued to the ceiling, and his mind racing frantically in circles like a coyote and roadrunner cartoon. What the heck was he thinking? His chest clenched almost painfully as his mind recalled his earlier escapade with Kyoko. Was he that much of a selfish beast that he lost control over things so completely? He felt like he was steadily losing track of who he was. This was not his time! He knew now that it was not just Kyoko he was attempting to protect by not becoming too close; it was himself. At any moment he could pop back to his normal timeline. There, he would be in control, independent, and alone. Every crazy moment he spent with Kyoko here made the thought of that silent, empty apartment of his that much more unbearable. But the worst thing of all, as he stared at the ceiling and imagined the girl in the room above it, was how, despite knowing all this, he was still having to fight with himself each moment to not race back into that bedroom and forget everything else. Why did his mind keep replaying every moment of that brief interlude in slow motion inside his brain? And why could he not stop his lips from tingling as if they were still being softly caressed?

Ughh… so pathetic. From now on, Ren needed to keep himself at a five meter distance from Kyoko at all times. He could not trust himself not to lose control and turn into a reasonless animal again. Enough with resting. He needed to get on with his job. With great effort Ren rolled across the floor to a wall and pulled himself to standing position. With zombie dance moves, Ren shook his clothes off. As he twisted his upper body to grab the pair of clean jeans lying on the chair behind him, Ren caught sight of something in the mirror that made him pause. …"1:50 pm"? Since when was that there? Ren flipped his head down to stare at the front of his boxers. Embroidered with dark, menacing letters were "Remember, Ren, or Else". How was Kyoko able to do this? He made sure that he got ready and left the house before she even awoke. He had just grabbed this set randomly from his drawer as he dressed in the darkness. A small smirk slid on half of Ren's mouth. That girl… She was extremely talented but some of her talents were down right scary. Ren examined the great amount of work and craftsmanship Kyoko had spent on this endeavor and then blinked. …Remember, Ren…

Remember… Wait…Amnesia? Could it possibly be…that he was suffering from amnesia? That he was this future Ren and that the life he had been living these last couple of days was his own. In the back of his mind, Ren knew his attraction to this idea was biased. Amnesia would mean that this illusive reality he was faced with would be real. A world where he was universally acknowledged and respected. A world where Kyoko was his to have and to hold until the end of time. No more holding back. No more placating himself with dreams of happiness for tomorrow. Everything was his now. All of this might be a possibility. No, it was a very good possibility. Though nothing felt like what he always imagined amnesia should feel like (shouldn't something feel a bit familiar after three days?) and…quite frankly this type of amnesia sounded like a corny plot twist of some romantic melodrama…it was still a more legitimate explanation than time travel of all things!

Ren slowly brought his fingers to his lips and smiled, as a small burst of excitement seemed to energize his weary limbs, but then paused. There was something else there. Now that amnesia was looking more and more like the truth, an unexplainable nervousness was growing in his stomach. What was with this sense of foreboding? Why when the fairy tale seemed real did he feel that a nightmare was brewing underneath?

This fear was unsettling, and it forced Ren to make a realization. He was not as confident in himself as he once thought. There had been a matter that he needed to take care of which he had been putting off all morning. Ren quickly threw the rest of the clothes on, shook some of the dirt out of his hair, and left the trailer in search of his manager.

Yashiro lifted his head when he heard the heavy, widespread footsteps of his long-term client. "Ren…you got dressed already? You should have taken your time. That last scene looked painful. Have a drink of water, at least." Yashiro pulled out the water bottle he held in his briefcase, but Ren ignored it.

"I have a favor to ask," Ren spoke. "I need a copy of 'Shut Your Eyes'. Can you get it for me before my next scene ends?"

Yashiro looked startled. "…What?" he asked hesitantly.

"The American film 'Shut Your Eyes' that I was in about a year ago…Can you get me a copy? I checked through all the movies at my house, and I don't have it."

Yashiro's face morphed into a grave expression. He spoke this time in a whisper, "Ren, I know you thought I was playing around with you yesterday, but I'm serious. I might be your manager, but I am also your friend. What is going on? If something is bothering you, we need to talk about things now before there is a problem."

Ren was taken aback by Yashiro's seriousness. "Nothing is wrong," he defended. "I just wanted to watch the movie, that's all. …To make sure that I am acting Sato out in a unique way. I…want to keep the viewers on their toes."

Yashiro's eyes searched Ren's face. "…All right," he finally spoke. "If you are sure about this… I'll get you a copy before you finish up here."

The two stood together silent for a moment before Ren glanced hesitantly over to his manager again. "Yashiro…I…Did I ever act…close to Ms. Nox before?"

Yashiro looked over at the actor confused. "Caitlyn Nox? No. You've always treated her professionally. In fact, you always seemed rather irritated whenever she was around. Why do you ask?"

Ren flipped his eyes back to the shoot. "…No reason. It looks like they're ready for me. Thanks for taking care of the movie for me," and he left.

* * *

Ren checked his watch as he walked through the doorway into his house. 11:02 am. He arrived here much earlier than he expected. He looked around the house. No sign of life. Kyoko must be out. Ren looked down at the round disk in his hand. Well, now was as good of a time as any. Still, Ren's hand hesitated for an instant before he inserted it into the machine.

With the grace of a dead fish being thrown onto a sushi chef's cutting board Ren collapsed into the couch. Though he was half tempted to let his struggling eyes go on the strike that they had been threatening all day, Ren forced himself to sit up straight and press the play button on the remote. After halfway into the film, however, Ren's eyes were glued to the screen and unwilling to close. Impressive. He could see why everyone made a big deal about his acting in this movie. It was…genius, for lack of a better word…and terrifying all at the same time. It was obvious why no other actor wanted this part. The movie was about a woman struggling with the decision of leaving her abusive CEO husband. A low level police officer, the hero of the story, does everything he can to convince her to escape him and to protect her from the husband's increasingly violent mistress. Ren was cast as the husband. Though he did not have as much screen time as the wife and the officer, his character was easily the one that haunted the darkness behind your eyelids. The most difficult part by far. If he played his character too hard, the audience would see the female lead as weak and unappealing in her wavering of her decision. Too soft, and it would completely disregard the potential impact of the film. The result that Ren seemed to have invented was…disturbing. His character was unpredictable, obsessive, and self-destructive. Indoctrinated at a young age by his abusive father, he was a man who knew nothing but to view people in terms of power and control. A man who reveled in debauchery but at the same time yearned for salvation. Detestable but strangely sympathetic. Watching him was like being pushed under water and struggling with all one's might for a breath of air.

How was he able to do it? No part he had was anything like this. Even the role of his up and coming part of the murderous BJ was nothing to this. BJ was pure darkness, but this character was…sick. He really needed to step up his game if his audience expected this caliber of acting from him.

Caitlyn Nox's image flashed in front of his eyes, and Ren quickly switched his full attention to the screen.

"Took you long enough to visit here," she spoke with mild irritation in her voice. She opened the door wider to let him in. She wore a diamond studded black dress and heavy makeup.

Ren's character brushed past her, pulled off his jacket and let it fall to the floor. "I see you got my gifts," he spoke gruffly as he loosened his tie.

"The dress fits perfectly as you can see, but this apartment… Why did it have to be this one? Apartment 30 has a better view." She walked up close to him and began to unbutton his shirt. Ren's character stared at the top of her head with a frown. "You should have come sooner," she continued. "I was getting so lonely in this apartment by myself, and you must have had it hard with only your wife around. Did I tell you? I saw her in the supermarket earlier today. What a naive idiot! I can see why you don't feel comfortable around her. …I've been thinking. Wouldn't it be better if you just left her and moved in with m…mmphh!"

Ren's character shoved his hand over her mouth and yanked her hair down so roughly that she was forced to stare up at him. She winced in pain. "You aren't allowed to speak about my wife with your dirty little mouth. You asked why I put you in Apartment 31. It's because I put all my whores in prime numbers, and you want to know the reason?" Caitlyn Nox's character shivered in fear as a hint of madness flickered through his glaring eyes. "Prime numbers can only be divided by themselves and one. They are pathetic little numbers that are cursed to look out for no one but themselves. You and I and every other woman I messed around with are covered in so much slime that we will never break out of our own darkness. We are worthless from the day we are born. We live for ourselves, and we die alone. But my wife is different." He pulled down her hair even harder, and she whimpered. "You are not worthy enough to lick her shoes. Don't you know what you are to me? My punishment. Every time I look at you it reminds me that I'm just an eternally damned pile of flesh without a soul." With that he released his hand and shoved his mouth forcefully to hers.

As Ren watched the violent scene unravel in front of his eyes, his mind flew to processing what he just heard. "Apartment 31 mistress." This is where it came from. Ren breathed out and laid his forehead onto the palm of his hand. He knew that it must have been a game with words, but he felt more relieved than he expected. If Ms. Nox was not a woman, he would… Ughh, she was not even worth thinking about…

The scene flipped to the front of his mansion-like house as his character entered through the front door. The house was completely dark except for shards of moonlight that made its way in through the windows. There, huddled on the stair steps, was his wife with a broken expression.

"…Whe…Where were you?" she asked quietly.

Ren's character looked up at her and then flipped his eyes down. "Nowhere you need to concern yourself with."

Slowly the woman stood up as she used the banister for support. "Gareth, I…I think we need to talk. I…I don't think I can do this anymore. I…I'm…"

Screen Ren shot his eyes towards hers in an intense glare. "…Don't speak. Don't you dare say anything!"

The woman shook as she looked away from him. "I'm going to fall apart any second, and you just tear yourself up whenever you're around me. Please…it's time to let me go."

Ren's character dropped the briefcase from his hands. He rushed to the stairs and roughly clenched her shoulders. "You aren't allowed to say this, you hear me? You love me! You promised. You promised when we got married that you would never leave my side."

She stared at him shocked and then turned her face to the side. "I was too young when we got married. I believed that all one needed in marriage was love. I thought that somehow you would change, that overtime my love would reach you."

Screen Ren pulled the woman close to him and started kissing her forehead. "If you go, I die! I love you. You are the one thing in my polluted life that has any meaning. I'll give you anything you want. I'll change into anything you want me to be. I just need you near me."

Gently the woman pushed herself out of his arms. "You've said that all before. The only thing I want is my freedom. …I've already packed my bags. Please…take care of yourself." She turned to leave. The eyes of Ren's character narrowed.

Ka-chink. The house door opened, and Ren turned himself away from the screen. What he saw made him rub his eyes in disbelief. Hallucination? Magnum, P.I., strolled into the house juggling four overflowing bags of groceries in his strangely thin arms. With the pliability of a Gumby doll the Hawaiian shirt clad man managed to use his teeth to disentangle the key from the lock and force off his white sneakers in a dance with his heels. Then he slammed the door closed with his backside. Keys hanging from the side of his mouth the man flipped his head over to Ren and smiled. His brown aviator sunglasses slipped some when he turned and very familiar golden eyes peaked out.

"You're here! I just stopped by the store to pick up some groceries. Let me go set these down. Hopefully I didn't make us late." The person spat out the keys on the small table by the door and headed into the kitchen. Ren heard a brief rustling of a paper bag and then a pause. "The clock says we have another half hour before we leave. That's good." Back in view, the person winced as he peeled off the caterpillar mustache stationed on his lip. "I didn't think I would make it in time. It was fierce at the grocery store today. I was ambushed in a five car Blitzkrieg for a parking spot, an old lady pelted me with bamboo shoots to keep me from picking up the last melon bread, and a five year old kid actually mooned me when his mother cut in front of me in the checkout line." The man's eyes narrowed to a menacing glare as he pulled off the fluffy fake chest hair glued to his chest. "It makes my blood boil to think that I let those actions go unavenged, but only the strongest ones survive in grocery store warfare, and I was in too much of a rush to pick fights. …But I figured out the answer to all our problems. An XXXG-01W Wing Gundam mobile suit with explosive fighting capabilities. I know it would take a lot of our savings to fund the development of something like that, not to mention a ton of legal hassle to allow it in public, but an eighteen meter high steel suit that could crush cars with its bare fists and turn annoying shoppers into dust with its laser beam eyes would make my life a lot less stressful. Oh yes…I'll teach that bratty kid the importance of respecting his elders… Oh, and you can use it as protection from your fans...although, knowing them, they will probably find a way to crawl in through the suit's cracks and chew through the wires like rats." The person pulled off the curly hair wig and let the longer locks hidden underneath fall to the shoulders. The glasses were pulled completely off, and Kyoko's whole face appeared in view. "You know, LME probably has a hidden prototype somewhere in its storage. Should we go on a treasure hunt?"

Ren was still staring at Kyoko's transformed face. "…What?"

"…You don't think it's a good idea? Come to think of it…I guess you can do the same things. Are you worried about being replac—"

A scream broke through her sentence.

"What are you watching?" Kyoko asked as she turned her head. Ren's eyes followed hers to the television.

On screen Ren's character was hovering over the woman he had just flung across the room. The woman reached up to her forehead and brought her hand back down to her eyes. Her fingers were coated in blood. The man clutched hold of that hand and used it to yank her body close.

"You are mine!" Screen Ren roared into the woman's face as he ground his fingers into her wrist. Pearls of blood appeared. "You aren't allowed to leave me, you selfish witch! Don't think that I don't know of that baby-faced cop that you've been meeting behind my back! Did you think I would let MY WIFE run into the arms of another man? It's my love for you that turns me into this, and now you leave me here to rot?" The man threw his wife to the wall. The force made her crumple to the ground. Seeing her quivering form below him, the man seemed shocked by his actions. Gently he bent down beside her and brushed her blood matted bangs away from her face. "Why is it that the only way of keeping you is by chaining you to my side?" The man clenched his teeth, closed his eyes in self-disgust, and began to yank the sobbing wife up the stairs.

Ren blinked. Oh right, the question. That scene had him dazed for a bit. "It's 'Shut Your Eyes'," Ren spoke as he forced his head away from the screen. "Do you want to watch it with me for a bit? The movie's already halfway thr…" Ren sputtered to a stop when he spotted Kyoko's expression. All color had drained out of her face as she stared at the screen. Ren noticed that her fingers were quivering.

Something was definitely wrong. "…Kyoko?" Ren asked tentatively. "…Are you alright?"

Kyoko's eyes flipped to Ren. They were stretched wide as they scrutinized his whole being. Ren was used to Kyoko being as easy to read as a billboard sign, but seeing her incomprehensible expression now…

Kyoko blinked, and a wide, vacant smile fabricated itself on her lips. "Oh…sorry...I think I'm feeling a bit nauseous. I'm just gonna…I'm going to go lie down for a bit before we have to leave. …You…can go back to watching the movie."

"Sick?" Ren searched Kyoko's face more closely. "Your face was like a ghost a second ago." Ren looked down at her stomach. "Do you think the baby is okay? Maybe we should—"

"No, no, no. Everything's fine. …I'll just go take a nap, and everything'll be okay." Kyoko flipped her face away and began to rush up the stairs.

"Is there anything you need? An ice pack? Shaved honey ice? One of those green sludge smoothies?"

Kyoko paused half way up the staircase and then looked back with a smile. "I'm fine. Really! …Just wake me up when its time to leave."

Ren watched her finish her way up the stairs. Maybe she really was all right. Near the top though Ren swore he saw Kyoko's smile start to crumble away as she took a brief painful glance back at the living room.

* * *

Ren was never a twiddler, but at this moment, not only were his thumbs anxiously orbiting each other, his foot was tapping out its own drum solo and his teeth were gnawing an escape route through his cheek. How much longer did they have to wait? Ren glanced over to Kyoko who sat still near the other side of the tiny office as she gazed out the window. Her pensive form was a charming sight to gaze upon, and Ren felt another surge of possessiveness engulf him.

Here, by some circumstance he had no idea what was, he now was in charge of the welfare of a lovely wife and child—(okay, not so much a child yet…more a blurry jellybean according to its first mug shot, but beautiful nonetheless)—and he had absolutely no idea what to expect or what he should be doing. Whatever force shoved him here should have at least left him a handbook or something. If all this was amnesia, he should have left a letter explaining everything, so that he right now would not be floundering in anxiety. A mental image came to his mind of himself lying on the ground struggling to write out a step by step guide of what to expect in his new life on the carpet with the blood that gushed out of his massive head wound. …"Step 5942: How to properly administer a new diaper without the use of duct tape"…Okay…maybe that amount of forethought was a bit too much to expect, but he hated this feeling of not knowing how to protect the people most important to him.

Ren's right hand forcibly grabbed the other to still it from its restless movement. Maybe he was making a bit deal out of nothing. Kyoko had been acting pretty energetic these few days he had memory of. Surely that meant that everything was perfectly right and healthy with her. On the other hand she had been throwing up an awful lot and from the corner of his eyes he had spotted her wincing in pain as she shifted her body. Was that normal? Or was it some sign that something was seriously wrong, and he, like some ignorant fool, ignored the warning signs, and now it has progressed into some kind of life threatening disease ready to rip his whole world out of existence? Ren glanced once again to his side and stared at Kyoko's still form. Well, she did not seem to be in any pain at this moment. He was probably just making a huge deal out of nothing. It was just…her expression earlier…it seemed so painful. She said it was nothing, and when she came back down from her room, she seemed normal again, but Ren's mind had already been put on guard. He should have been watching Kyoko more closely. How could he be so negligent?

Ren's thoughts were interrupted when the seventy three year old tottering doctor entered the room once again as his eyes scanned the charts on the clipboard in his hand. With Ren's frenzied mind, the doctor seemed to creep to his seat with the speed of a snail with chewing gun stuck to its foot.

The moment the man's bottom touched the chair, Ren's mouth was open. "Well? Did all the tests come in? How are they?"

The man slowly looked up at Ren. "Oh, all the results are in…," he said dismissively and then turned to Kyoko. "But what didn't come through was that Yuba recipe you gave me last time. It wasn't like all your other recipes. For some reason it tasted like an old shoe."

Kyoko, who had been staring at the floor with clenched hands, slowly raised her head. Her eyes gradually focused on the doctor. "…What type of shoe was it? A sweaty gym shoe or a musky lady's pump?"

"More like moldy wet goulashes with a touch of Armani and a hint of fermented soybean."

"Doctor Iwasa, I told you not to use the 'Udderful Pass of Grass' brand. Their soymilk is cheap quality and more expensive than the others. I don't even know how that company stays in business."

"But their commercial is so cute with the dancing cow wearing the toupee. And the commercials say that their brand gives you a youthful tightening and glow to your skin."

"You're a doctor! You should know better than to believe every crackpot advertising scam out there."

"But I'm getting a double chin. You have no idea how badly you feel your age when you are around babies all d—"

"The results! How are the results?" Ren interrupted.

The doctor stared at him, then back at Kyoko, and then chuckled. "You're a lucky woman to have such a caring husband. …Well, both the blood test and urine sample look good. The levels of your AFP are right where they should be. P4 and PAPP-A are normal. Nothing unusual in the hCG tests."

Ren let out a sigh of relief. Though he had absolutely no idea what any of those acronyms meant, everything sounded fine. He glanced at Kyoko. Her eyes were closed and she was breathing deeply. He looked up and noticed that the doctor had paused from looking through his notes and was concentrating on her. When the doctor caught Ren watching him, he jolted his head back to the clipboard and resumed speaking.

"The only thing that gives me concern is your weight. At this point in your pregnancy, you're not expected to gain too much weight, but it seems like you have lost a half a kilo since I last saw you, and that makes me nervous. Remember, you are eating for two now. The baby inside you does not care if your measurements match that stick-figured Chi-chi model."

The doctor continued to chide Kyoko on her eating habits—ironically using the same arguments she often berated Ren with—as she sat quietly accepting the censure. Odd, whenever she was around Ren, she always seemed to eat, albeit sometimes unenthusiastically, and she was not the type of girl to be so superficial as to care more about looking thin than having a healthy pregnancy. Ren closed his eyes for a moment. So he had been missing something important. Unspoken worries that had been lurking in the back of his mind for a while began to slam their fists on the front of his brain. What a fool he was to hope that his problem was amnesia! Was he really ready for this whole family thing? How was he supposed to take care of others when he was barely able to take care of himself? How could he possibly be ready to be a father? He was too selfish, too unaware, too ignorant, too much a workaholic, too…terrified. He would destroy that innocent child for sure.

"Well, that seems to be everything. It was a pleasure as always to see you, Tsuruga-san. Your next appointment will be in a couple weeks. Now after you sign on this form here, you will be free to go."

Kyoko took the form. "What is this?" she asked.

"Oh, just medical red tape rubbish. Just be sure to press really hard with your pen and sign your signature nice and large."

Kyoko handed him the clipboard back, rose as she thanked the doctor for his time, and waited for Ren by the door. Ren remained seated.

"You go on ahead. I've got some personal matters I want to discuss with the doctor."

Kyoko shot her eyes over to Ren. "…Huh?"

"Go and take the car. I know you need to be going to work soon. I'll take a taxi home when I'm done."

Kyoko stared at him oddly but then quickly flipped her eyes back down. "…If that's what you think is best. …I'll see you at home later," she muttered as she exited the room.

It was now time to speak up, but Ren found that that nervous ache in his stomach was still throbbing away. Ren gulped in a breath of air. "So about my prob—"

"Did I give you permission to speak?"

Ren stopped dumbfounded. Was he hearing things? The doctor in front of him paid little attention as he fuddled with something in the hidden nook of his desk.

Ren cleared his throat. "I know this actually isn't under your expertise, but since you are trusted enough to keep quiet about my wife's pregnancy, you are really the only one I can think of to tur—"

"Can't you see that I am busy? Now why don't you keep your yappy American mouth shut while I take care of more important things first?"

Ren was sure of it. Those words came from that grandpa-like doctor who had been beaming at he and his wife just moments ago. Having not encountered this type of blatant disrespect from an elder in a long time, Ren was at a loss for words. The man continued to work behind his desk. At odd moments the old man would smile and chuckle to himself. Curious, Ren quietly positioned himself in a different angle to see what he was so concentrated on. Ren was surprised to catch a glimpse of Kyoko's image. On the portrait size fan shot was scribbled in girly-like handwriting (though nothing like Kyoko's) "To my sweet, sexy, most wonderful doctor in the whole wide world. No one will ever understand me as well as you do." Ren noticed that the man was in the process of pressing the "medical form" onto the picture to leave her signature under the note. "…Darn it…Forgot it would come out backwards," the man muttered to himself. …By the look of things his wife's gynecologist was some hardcore believer fan. …Ren was not too sure he was okay with that.

The man caught Ren looking at him and quickly stashed the picture into a desk drawer. With dignity that did not seem appropriate following what he was caught doing, he scanned Ren's whole body and then brusquely spoke, "In my medical opinion, it's just constipation. The bloating, cramps, and dizziness come from not drinking enough water. Don't bother me with questions like this in the future."

Ren stared at him for a moment. Constipation? "…I'm not asking you to check if I'm pregnant!"

"I'm an Ob/Gyn. As you are neither a woman nor pregnant then we have little to talk about. Go talk to a family physician."

"But that's what I wanted to ask you about. I need a doctor's referral. One with a good background in head trauma and psychiatry, but most importantly someone who can be trusted with not disclosing anything."

"I don't see why you would need to hassle me for that."

Ren gritted his teeth in irritation. Opening his mouth to this two-faced doctor made him incredibly apprehensive, but he knew that saying nothing would leave him in the same clueless, powerless position he had been wallowing in for the last few days. Cautiously, Ren recounted that unusual morning he had a few days before. He described his lack of memory of the past seven years, explained how damaging it would be if his situation were found out, and expounded his dilemma of having no idea who his regular doctor was or whom he could trust.

The doctor's expression had not changed at all as Ren forced out this confession. When Ren finally ended, the doctor leaned his mouth up to his clasped hands and sighed. "You…really are not that good of an actor. Your April fool's day joke is as unbelievable as it is uncreative. Now don't talk to me until you think of one I might actually fall for…like your struggles with your nymphomania or a botched sex change operation."

Ren groaned. "It's bad timing, I know, but I'm serious. You don't have to believe me. Just give me a name."

The man stared at Ren for a long period of time. Finally he moved his face away from his fists and spoke, "…So…you are really telling the truth. You really woke up one morning with some ridiculously rare form of retrograde amnesia."

"That's what I want to find out."

"…You can't remember anything about your marriage to Kyoko? …Or of the time you were working on that American movie of yours?"

"Not at all."

The old man continued to stare at him intently. Finally, he broke eye contact with Ren and leaned back in his chair. "All right," he spoke after a contemplative moment. "I know of a doctor who can help you, but you seem to be mistaken about a rather important fact."

Ren looked at him surprised. "What is that?"

"I keep my mouth firmly closed for Kyoko because I am an honorable doctor who strives to follow the tenets of the Hippocratic Oath. I keep my mouth shut for you because you're going to pay me twice as much as any reporter would for your little story."

Ren's brows furrowed into a straight line. He knew he should never have trusted this creepy, stalker-like man. "Will a check do?" he spoke crossly as he pulled out a checkbook and a pen.

"Old fashioned but acceptable. …Oh and add a few 0's to that. …To the end of the number, not the front, brat. Thank you. …Now write a similar check to the doctor I will refer you to in order to buy his silence as well."

Ren looked up and smiled. "I doubt that there is another doctor who is as unprincipled as you are."

The doctor smiled in return. "You're probably right." He yanked both checks from Ren's hands, examined them, and then stuffed both in his pocket. "Congratulations. You are talking to a man who was one of the preeminent physicians of head trauma in his younger years. I'll prescribe some tests for the lab to figure out exactly what happened to you. Prepare to spend the rest of the day in excruciating pain and agonizing boredom."

Ren glared at the doctor as the man began to write out the orders for the lab work. Without a comment Ren rose and turned to leave, but stopped when he heard the man's voice once again.

"Hey, …what was up with the weird atmosphere between you and Kyoko-chan today?"

Ren rolled his eyes. "Didn't I already explain that I lost my memory? Of course I would be a bit off."

A snort from behind. "I wasn't talking about you being the weird one, idiot. Such fantastic observational skills. Did you not even notice how Kyoko-chan avoided looking at you through almost all of today's meeting?"

Ren head turned back to the doctor.

* * *

That woman was acting odd, and not her usual caffeinated fruitcake weird either. Something was definitely up. Kudo Aoki observed Kyoko as she remained silent to the director's threats.

"As an actress, you should know how important it is that the main actors not be switched out in the midst of a drama. You begged me last time to let this matter rest for the day, but you know as well as I do that if Emi-chan refuses to work with you, the drama is finished unless you are replaced. It doesn't matter how good an actor you are. Your scene with her will start in fifteen minutes. If the two of you still can't act together, you're out. …This has nothing to do with me, so don't turn your black magic ways over here."

The director flipped around and stomped off. He acted tough, but Kudo could see that he could not help glancing fearfully over his shoulder and touching his head to make sure things were still attached. Kudo turned to Kyoko. Her form was bent, and she stared at the ground with a pensive expression. Where was the fire or the ignorant courage of hers? This silence was unnerving. Kudo wanted to touch her, wanted to break her out of this unfamiliar despondency. His foot stepped forward on its own accord. No! He shook his head. This was exactly what he had been working for. He straightened his shoulders and slipped back on a cocky smirk.

"What a pathetic look on your face. Looks like you finally figured out that all your efforts till now have been pointless," Kudo mocked as he sauntered over to Kyoko's side.

Her face flipped up with an eyebrow cocked. "Huh? What are you talking a… Oh, the whole being fired thing. …Well, you look happy. You're still upset about me calling you a coward a couple of weeks ago?"

"'A pathetic, little groundhog actor who hides away from his own shadow like a lazy, self absorbed sissy. An actor like you is popular now but has the same worth as expired squid unless you take responsibility for your part and use all your ability to perform it well' were your exact words. But look at now. Here I am well loved by my public and the director, and you are there, a friend to no one and about to be jobless in a few minutes. Didn't I tell you it was better just to give in?"

Kyoko snorted. "I overestimated you. I had thought a couple weeks ago that you could drum up the last bit of courage in your sorry hide and transform yourself into an actual actor, but instead, you're still a coward who attacks others to protect your own ego. But you're right this time." Kyoko sighed and glanced around the room. "It looks like I can't get everything I want just by fighting. I thought I could avoid doing this. Come on." Kyoko's fingers shot out like a lobster, pinched Kudo's ear, and dragged him across the set.

"Ahh…oww…Watch it! If I have a psychological breakdown because one half of my face looks like Dumbo, it'll be your fault."

"Stop whining. A breakdown would only improve your personality."

Emi's face was frozen in shock as Kudo was dragged in front of her and shoved down to a deep 120 degree saikeirei bow.

Kyoko's voice rang out loud and clear. "Sorry to interrupt. Kudo-san just came here to apologize for the lie he told you yesterday."

What did she say? Kudo tried to pick his head up, but Kyoko yanked his ear down farther.

"If…if you think this kind of forceful display is going to convince me that you are not manipulating him, you are seriously cracked," Emi-chan spoke in a harsh whisper. "To think I was really starting to admire you! You're just some siren hag who forces men to bend to your will. Well, I'm not going to allow it! I'm going to make sure that the entire entertainment business never gives you a job again. As soon as you are fired, everyone you ever misled is going to see what you truly—"

"Wait a minute," Kyoko interrupted, her voice still louder than normal, but still calm and friendly. "You seem to have gotten the wrong idea. He's definitely my little boy toy. There was no lie about _that_. What he's apologizing for is for claiming that I am jealous of you."

Unable to stare at anything but his kneecaps because of Kyoko's pinch of steel, Kudo's mouth was now a makeshift birdhouse. Emi seemed just as shocked. It was a good minute before she was finally able to retort back with "…What?"

"It's ridiculous if you think about it. I use million yen bills as toilet paper, I've won so many Japanese academy prizes that I use them as bowling pins, and I have the sexiest man alive as my husband who believes every little thing I say. What in the world do you have that I would be jealous of?"

Did Kyoko go mental? Kudo noticed Emi's voice was rising. "Be…because I have the lead role in the drama and because Kudo-san likes me. He told me that himself."

Kyoko's fingers finally loosened, and Kudo was able to raise his head. He was surprised to see the eyes of practically everyone on set on the two girls. All right. Time to take things under control. He had absolutely no idea what Kyoko was planning, but he knew it was in his best interest to interfere. Rubbing his sore appendage, he opened his mouth. "Now lad—"

"Why should I be jealous of your role? Excuse me for saying this, but your acting level is too amateur to consider you a rival. After the producers watched the difference between our skills, they would have forced the director to replace you with me, anyway. But this way is better. I'll be mocked in the beginning for being forced out, but when your drama airs and the audience sees how pathetic your act is, the first thing they will talk about is how the drama could have been salvaged if I was in it. I'll build up my fame and reputation but won't have to put in any of the work. And it's all thanks to you."

Kudo watched Emi's face as it slowly morphed into a bright red puffer fish.

"I could get to your level easily if I work hard!"

Kyoko smirked and then turned to Kudo. "Well Aoki, haven't you been a naughty boy? Confessing love to another woman while owned by me? What do you have to say to fix this mess?"

Kudo, who had been trying to find a way to break into this Twilight zone dialogue, now found himself tongue tied as the two girls and everyone on set eyed him expectantly. No, he could not leave it like this. Though the women's eyes showed sympathy, the men on set were staring at him like he is an emasculated Ken doll ready to beg like a dog and bark "God Save the Queen" at Kyoko's command.

"Ha…ha ha…don't take Tsuruga-san seriously, Emi-chan. She's just trying to provoke you for getting her fired. …And I wouldn't really call myself her 'boy toy'. She has been forcing me to pretend I like her through blackmail…of really manly stuff…too coarse to tell a delicate girl such as—"

"Oh Blubbercheeks, there's no point in forcing you to pretend for me anymore. I'm getting fired anyway. I've tried pretending to be a good girl, but I don't think I'm cut out for it. What's the point of sticking with just steak when a buffet is for the taking?"

"My cheeks are youthfully puffy! No way are you allowed to call me Blub—" One passing glance at Kyoko's eyes and Kudo lost his ability to speak. As hard as he tried, only awkward gurgles escaped his throat. Her stare! Like a succubus looking at her next meal. He wanted to run away, but his body stood stubbornly stiff like a rusted Tin man. With eyes still hooked to her prey, Kyoko slowly moved closer to him.

"You know the fundamental thing that I have and you don't, Emi-chan?" she spoke as she slowly brushed her thumb across Kudo's lips. Kudo's face turned hot pink.

Kyoko twisted her hand around the collar of his shirt—her fingers grazed his collarbone—and pulled his face down to hers. Kudo's wide eyes watched Kyoko inch closer till he could feel the heat of her lips. His heartbeat was pumping so loud that no thought could enter his mind. Looking at her frozen meat popsicle, Kyoko smirked and blew hot air teasingly across his lips. Then she lifted herself up and turned back to Emi.

In a whisper that everyone on set had to bend in closer to hear, she spoke, "The charisma of a _real_ actor, and that is something you are born with, not taught."

Kyoko turned back and inspected her scene of crime. He was still crouched over and looked as if a hairdryer fell into his bath water. Kyoko used her fingers to wipe the drool off his face and brush it off on his clothes.

"Don't worry," she spoke as she glanced back to Emi and smirked. "I always put them back where I found them when they are all used up." With that she grabbed the arm of Kudo's useless carcass and dragged it away.

It was not until Kyoko kicked him squarely in the shin that he blinked out from his daze. Kudo spat out obscenities as he bent over his leg. Kyoko just rolled her eyes. As the pain dissipated Kudo glanced up at her.

"…How did you know what I said to Emi-chan yesterday?" he finally spoke.

Kyoko snorted in a tired sort of way. "Your revenge plans are as predictable as your ego is warped."

Kudo glanced over to the other side of the building where Emi was being surrounded. "Well, your revenge plans suck too. You might have made me look like an idiot, but you lost any type of respect you earned here as well."

Kyoko remained silent. He was a bit insulted by her lack of attention.

"I was surprised to see you aren't running away from your true self anymore."

Kyoko frowned as she stared at the far off scene. "…Don't try to assume that I am anything so simple."

Kudo was surprised. He had never heard Kyoko make a comment to anything that suggested _that_ event before. "…Well, don't assume that Emi is going to stop you from being fired. She's not the type to have enough guts to rise up to your challe—"

"All right you old hag, are you coming or not?"

…What? Kudo watched as Kyoko took a deep breath and walked up onto the set opposite the fuming cell phone star.

Emi began to roll up her sleeves. "All right. Let's do this scene. I'll show you 'actor's charisma' as a farewell present as you move on to unemployment. Director! Where are you?"

As Kudo watched the scene begin to unfold, he frantically replayed the earlier farce in his mind. This was not right! To be able to be bated into such a ridiculous contest, a person had to have a pride easily pricked and the tenacity to actually fight for something, but Kudo knew that Emi had neither…that is what made her so easy to seduce and manipulate. She was a woman willing to wear and do any degrading thing in the desperate attempt to be noticed by others. Always willing to agree and parrot others' ideas in the hope of being accepted. Emi had no confidence in herself. In a confrontation with Kyoko, after her initial outrage, she should have just locked herself in her dressing room and cried.

But look at her now! Her acting was the best it had ever been. Hints of anger, jealousy, confusion, longing all mingled about in her character. Kudo was surprised to see her chuck the vase of flowers she was supposed to be giving as an engagement present at Kyoko's head. When did her acting become so good? No, Emi was a mess. He could see now that it was Kyoko controlling and bringing out the subtleties of her character. Why was she letting Emi win? Didn't she want to humiliate the girl who was forcing her to be fired? From the corner of his eye Kudo saw Kyoko's eyes flash, and his mind finally clicked the pieces together. Kyoko was the puppet master of this whole charade! She knew that Emi would not rise up to fight on her own powers; that is why Kyoko made sure that everyone in the building heard their conversation. Imagine having everyone who was muttering about how much better the other actress is than you suddenly surround you in passionate support. Emi had to rise to face off Kyoko. She would do anything to keep the attention and support of her onlookers. But Kudo had seen Kyoko's eyes. Kyoko was not about to let Emi win until her character looses to Emi's in the script, ten episodes away. With the pressure of her onlookers, Emi could not force Kyoko to be fired until she won. Furthermore, against Emi's more passionate character, only Kyoko's complex Chouko would fit. The director would be forced to accept Kyoko's acting. Kyoko's role was now secure.

The only thing…for Kyoko's plan to keep working, she would have to remain the villain off stage. There would be no hope of earning the respect of her coworkers here, and when she was done with the drama, her name would be the first in the interviews to be ground into the dirt. _That_ was her sacrifice. Kudo's hand rose to cup his lips. He could still feel Kyoko's warmth. That's right…this was not enough. Despite her sacrifice she was still able save her pride as an actress. Kudo needed her broken. Looking around, everyone's eyes were glued to the set. Careful not to catch anyone's attention, Kudo sneaked out of the studio and into the director's empty office. Rifling through the file drawer, he spotted it. The payroll information. He opened the file up and there it was. The home address that the Tsurugas worked so hard in keeping a secret from the public. Kudo smiled. He was going to make her pay.

* * *

On the other side of Tokyo two strong willed men were in the midst of a staring war. Perhaps if Ren was in normal circumstances, he could have formed his characteristic glare that would have made everyone around him shudder with fear and kowtow to his demonic excellence, but as it was, the man in front of him had a heart of sadistic steel and Ren was so exhausted, it was taking all of his effort to keep his eyelids open. Still, Ren had plenty to be angry about. Six long hours of being prodded, poked, and publicly humiliated, namely.

"...You are purposely torturing me. I might be able to understand the ridiculous amount of x-rays and scans I had to go through, but most of the tests you prescribed had no point at all."

"Stop being a whiny patient. You're just too ignorant to see the tests' benefits."

"Making me run thirty miles on an uphill treadmill."

"To check your heart and lung conditions. Amnesia is sometimes paired with not getting enough oxygen to the brain."

"The invasive colonoscopy."

"To give me something to laugh about when I go to sleep tonight. A happy doctor means a better prognosis."

Strangling this doctor would give Ren something to laugh about.

"Now about the results of the tests. The scans show no sign of head trauma, except for the small lesion on your forehead."

"That…happened after I woke up."

The doctor continued to scan the charts. "Did you drown on the 28th of March?"

"…I woke up in bed."

"Was the bed under water?"

"No…" Ren growled. He was not in the mood for stupid questions. "Both the bed and I were dry."

"Well, I've already ruled out the memory loss as a complication of another medical condition, but I think I have the answer you are looking for."

Ren leaned forward in his chair.

The doctor eyed him seriously and spoke in a grave voice. "You're a dipsomaniac."

"…What does that mean?"

"It means you're a lampshade donning, policeman kissing, naked on the rooftop, flaming alcoholic. Lay off the booze, and your memories will eventually return."

"I am not a drunk."

The doctor snorted. "I thought you said you couldn't remember anything for the last seven years."

Ren's mind flashed to the first morning and the decanter of scotch he reportedly emptied the night before. "...I'm not that type of person."

The doctor looked skeptical. "... I suppose another explanation would be psychological distress. Maybe you spotted wrinkles on your perfect face. Or maybe Kyoko told you that she can't remember why she decided to marry you and she wants a d—"

"It's NOT that," Ren interrupted hastily. "What's another option?"

The doctor slowly closed his mouth and stared at him critically.

Ren cleared his throat. "…You do think this is amnesia?"

The doctor continued his intent gaze. After a long pause he spoke once again. "With no physical evidence whatsoever of explanation, most doctors would conclude that you are lying. As for me, I am much more interested in the question of why you become adamentally defensive and dismissive about issues that do not fit your ideal percieved life. Whether it's on purpose or subconscious, I can't quite tell, but pretending something does not exist won't work for long."

His stomach was hurting again. This was a stupid waste of his time. He was a fool to think he could get answers here. Ren rose to leave, but the doctor's voice made him pause.

"Umeboshi rice balls."

Ren froze. The doctor continued to gaze out the window. "What?"

"Make that for dinner tonight. It will help with nausea, and your wife might be able to keep it down."

The doctor turned his eyes to Ren.

"She made us wait three hours before we did the ultrasound last time. She kept saying that she wanted to wait for you. You want my advice? Don't be too confident in the fact that you're married. A better man than you is going to whisk her away if you are not too careful."

* * *

"He…he was the best husband anyone could ask for! Loyal…_sniff_…always made sure that his family was well provided for." The woman—middle-aged, somewhat chubby, with a desperate, ruddy face—threw herself onto the covered lump in front of her. From the white sheet a stiff hand flopped out. "Why…why did such a good man have to die?"

The daughter—pale, tearstained face, wearing a rumpled high school uniform with a skirt with as much function as Tarzan's loincloth—rose up and hung onto the woman's arm. "Mom…we…we didn't even have a chance to say goodbye."

Beside the two women a man looked helplessly on. Though his looks were like a typical Japanese salary man, certain things set him apart. His skin glowed blue, his feet were missing, and his comb over defied all laws of nature. He reached out his arm to touch the two women, but it slid right through them. "I'm right here. Can't you hear me? I haven't left yet!"

The older woman slowly rose up and started petting the sheet. "He was such…_sniff_…a friendly man. Everyone loved him."

"I'm here. Don't cry. Our unbreakable love must have let me stay here with you."

Someone snorted, and the man shot his head around to see it was the nurse, who leaned against the dissection table with a bored expression.

The man stared at the nurse stunned. "You can hear me…" he breathed. The nurse did not react. "No! You can hear me. Tell them. Tell them I'm here. Please, help an old man say goodbye to his family before he moves on to the other side."

The person in white's eyes rose and stared apathetically at the pleading man. "…I'm just here to record what type of burial is to be done and if the hospital staff should purify the body. I have no interest in the shallow problems of boring people like you and your family."

The mother looked up from the lump. "...Did…_sniff_…someone just say something?"

"Mom!" the girl whispered. "I've been thinking for awhile that this nurse seemed familiar. Remember the poster of the singer I had over my bed in elementary school? You said it would curse me to have an early death and made me take it down…"

The man was now shaking, and he shot his arms out in an attempt to strangle the uncaring figure. "You…shallow pretty boy…if you don't help me talk to my family for the last time and let me peacefully join my ancestors, I will haunt you for the rest of your life and make it a living hell!"

The nurse glanced back at the man. "…For life?"

Suddenly the nurse stood up straight and walked over to the mourning family. Both the wife and daughter blushed as he stopped a half a meter away from them. "The corpse has something to say to you."

The two looked dazed. The man, now excited, floated over to the nurse's ear and began to recite his final bittersweet farewell to his family.

"He says that he will miss you two terribly, but he will be watching down on you for the rest of your lives. He says not to grieve for him too much, and that he is sure that the two of you will take care of his funeral rites perfectly. He has tried to be a good husband and father and hopes that you will remember him now that he is gone. To his wife he wishes her the best and he is sorry for whatever financial difficulties she will face in the future. To his little bunny, he says to try to marry someone like him and to stop ogling the delinquent nurse."

The two women's faces looked like they were hit by lightening. In the silence the nurse reached down and grabbed hold of the dangling hand. Astounded, the wife began in a whisper, "…That…that's really him. No one but your dad called you bunny. He's…_sniff_…really here. Hunny! Can you hear me? I love you forever. I'll throw you the biggest funer—"

"He has something else to say," the nurse interrupted.

The man flipped his head to the nurse. "I didn't say any—"

"He wants to apologize for cashing out his Life Insurance policy to invest in a secret yacht named after his ex-girlfriend."

The ghost's eyes opened wide. "How…how did you…"

"He suggests that you can ask the girls in 'Club Big Jugs' for financial help in putting 'Uncle Snuggle Bear' to rest. Oh, and make sure to call his Mother for cooking tips because the bunny deserves to eat food fit for human consumption once in her life."

Silence in the room.

The nurse turned to the mother. "Now, about the body…"

"…Chuck it in the dumpster."

"Do you have a preference of the religious affiliation of the dumpster? No? Well, that makes the paper work easy then. Be sure to file the death certificate within a few days."

Reino, the former lead singer of the once famous band "Vie Ghoul"— whose legacy now survived mostly in "Remember that Band" quiz questions and antique bobble head collectables—smiled as he turned and began to exit the room. He could see how the aura around the man had turned red, his hands began to become twisted, and his face began to distort into something not human. He saw the figure flying towards him with looks that could kill as the door slammed shut. Finally, something to make his life more entertaining.

Bam! Reino turned around and stared at the closed door in disbelief. This ghost could not even control basic transmutability. …With pathetic ghost skills like that, how was he supposed to be able to haunt Reino like he promised? Reino hung his head in disappointment. The recently departed were not of the quality they used to be. He had taken this job in the hospital in the hopes of finding someone…anyone who could match him, but no one could ever captivate him, not like _her_.

In his mind he could still remember the day he saw her in perfection. Scar on head, black dress twisting around, hate waves flowing around her. Such fierceness, such raw power. A woman with the potential to rise above the shallow existence he always observed around him. If he could make her hate him, he knew that she would have the drive to not quit fighting until she wiped him off the planet. Beautiful.

But in the end, it was all for disappointment. Reino still remembered his last meeting with her.

_._

"_It's stuffy in here. Why did you have to wear such a common, frilly dress?"_

"_Look idiot. I don't take my fashion tips from you. And you were the one who pushed me in the closet and locked both of us in here!"_

"_Ah, but there is something you don't seem to understand no matter how many times I tell you. I like you."_

"…_I'm getting married in three minutes."_

"…_So?"_

"…'_So?'?"_

"_What does you getting married have anything to do with what we're talking about?"_

"…_urghh…Beagle, we have been playing this cat and mouse game for a couple of years now, but today it ends."_

_Reino snorted. "It's not your choice to end things. Marriage does not necessarily mean monogamy. It's just some silly superstition of the shallow minded. We have something more. Both of us are of the same kind. We are fated to remain in this hunt until we rip each other's throats out."_

_Kyoko closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "No…I know a way to end it. All my married life I'm going to stay dull and boring, you got that? I'll call my husband sappy pet names, I'll raise tons of runny nosed babies, I'll make them lunchboxes with masochistically smiling octopus wieners, and the whole lot of us will wear matching t-shirts on vacations. Take that, you dumb dog!"_

_Reino stared at her horrified. She wouldn't…_

"_And listen very carefully! As long as I am married, there is no way I'm going to be involved with you or any other man for that matter! Go back to hell, demon!" Lifting up her skirt she slammed her high heel clad foot powerfully against the door. As the door collapsed forward, she brushed off her outfit, straightened her tiara, and strode gracefully through the open arch a few meters off. Reino walked over as he watched her slowly progress down the aisle. He spotted Kyoko's final farewell. One arm was tucked elegantly behind her back as her hand discreetly flipped him off._

.

Not that it seemed too much of a loss at that point anyway. By that time almost all of Kyoko's hate demons had been dried up, interest in love had overshadowed her drive to kill, and the uncanny way her gorilla fiancé seemed to interrupt any of their meetings was increasingly painful. What a waste…

But then more than a year ago he spotted her once again. What a change! Eyes of cold steel. A face of agonizing pain. Deeper and darker than her simple hatred of Fuwa Sho. One that was facing off the whole world with fury and anguish. Her demons were back and guarding her on all sides. So beautiful… So untouchable… If only she was not pulled away by that—

Slam! …Well, speak of the devil… Reino watched as the tall lump of a man continued down the hospital hall with an agitated expression and with little attention to the world around him. That hurt, Reino thought as he rubbed his shoulder. Still, that moment of contact did give him some very interesting news. Why, that hag must have been busy. It was the same face, but _that_ was not Kyoko's husband. …No husband meant that Kyoko was not married. And using her own words, not married meant that she was free game. Reino smiled. Things were about to become interesting again.

* * *

Notes:

Not too happy with this chapter, but it is time for me to put something out and move on. Sorry about the errors of the previous chapter. I changed the note a little bit, and I later realized that I had written Kudo's name out to be Kato (his drama character's name) in most of the story (making a confusing story even more confusing). This is actually funny, because I spent a great deal of effort in picking out the name for Kudo. Kudo Aoki's name is a stage name. He was born Aoki Masaki but got made fun of a whole bunch as a child because his first name was the same as the talento/wrestler Sumitani Masaki (AKA: Razer Ramen HG-real person, look him up if you want to see what Aoki had to go through). He used his last name as a first name (which is a "cool" thing to do seven years in the future) and picked Kudo as a surname because it is so close to the Ancient Greek word _kudos_ which is glory, honor, and fame . This whole thing, of course won't make it into the story. It was just part of the character sketch. Anyway, despite all this I totally faze out and call him Kato. Sorry guys.

I knew first hand that this section (namely chapters 2 through 6) would be incredibly disorienting, slow, and confusing. I considered condensing this part from the very beginning, but I felt that the whole "answers in front face but can't make sense of it all" section for Ren was extremely important. With more chapters, I felt this section would feel less slow, because you can pass right through it. That meant that you, the readers of now, were my sacrifices, and I apologize. Things that are slow seem even slower when chapters are uploaded months apart. But you all have been very sweet and have not written in complaints about how the tediousness of my story made you chuck you computer out the window...Come to think of it, if you did chuck your computer out the window, you could not type a complaint. ...So I live in blissful unawareness of my torture in your life. Saying that, I am welcome to all reviews, positive and negative. They really help me fine tune my writing skill, and they keep me motivated to write. Good news is that the middle of six begins the more directed (though admittedly still confusing) storyline.

As a thank you to the reviewers, I put up another sketch on my author's page. Don't expect too much. Still, thank you so much for your comments!


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